hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Improving Access to Mental Health Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2613
Sponsor: Sen. Stabenow, Debbie [D-MI]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Health

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Improving Access to Mental Health Act of 2018

 
This bill increases the Medicare reimbursement rate for clinical social worker services. The bill excludes clinical social worker services from the prospective payment system in which predetermined amounts form the basis for payment under Medicare.
 
Additionally, the bill alters the definition of "clinical social worker services" as it relates to Medicare. Under current law, "clinical social worker services": (1) include services performed for the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses, and (2) exclude services furnished to an inpatient of a skilled nursing facility as a condition of the facility's participation in the Medicare program. The bill repeals these provisions and instead specifies that such services include certain types of health behavior assessment and intervention.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Conservation Reserve Program Improvement and Rural Water Systems Access Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2614
Sponsor: Sen. Thune, John [R-SD]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Agricultural conservation and pollution
Economic development
Farmland
Hunting and fishing
Land use and conservation
Public contracts and procurement
Rural conditions and development
Soil pollution
Water quality
Water use and supply
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Conservation Reserve Program Improvement and Rural Water Systems Access Act of 2018 

 
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to reauthorize through FY2023 and modify the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). (CRP provides payments to farmers who agree to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production and plant species that will improve environmental health and quality.) 
 
The bill authorizes USDA to designate areas of special economic sensitivity as economic priority areas for CRP allocations. These areas include areas with actual and significant declining habitat for specifies of economic significance. A &quot;species of economic significance&quot; is a wildlife specifies: (1) for which CRP is critical to maintaining its habitat, and (2) that the governor of a state verifies provides more than $150 million each year to the economy of the state from hunting and related activities. 
 
Additionally, the bill: (1) authorizes cost-share assistance for fencing and water distribution practices, and (2) modifies policies regarding grazing and the mechanical harvesting of vegetative cover on CRP land. 
 
The bill also amends the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to prohibit the Forest Service from charging rural water districts or associations rental fees for rights-of-way for rural water pipelines that cross National Forest System land. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Advancing Emergency Preparedness Through One Health Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2615
Sponsor: Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Animal protection and human-animal relationships
Congressional oversight
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Environmental health
Government studies and investigations
Health care coverage and access
Health programs administration and funding
Health promotion and preventive care
Infectious and parasitic diseases
Intergovernmental relations
Medical research
State and local government operations
Veterinary medicine and animal diseases

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Advancing Emergency Preparedness Through One Health Act of 2018

 
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture, in coordination with other specified agencies and departments, to develop, publish, and submit to Congress a national One Health Framework for coordinated federal activities under the One Health Program, which encourages collaborative efforts to help better prevent, prepare for, and respond to zoonotic disease outbreaks.
 
The framework must (1) describe existing efforts and contain recommendations for building upon and complementing the activities of federal entities; and (2) establish specified goals, including advancing the scientific understanding of the connections among human, animal, and environmental health. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Environmental Health Workforce Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2616
Sponsor: Sen. Stabenow, Debbie [D-MI]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Disaster relief and insurance
Employment and training programs
Environmental health
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances
Health personnel
Licensing and registrations
Natural disasters
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Environmental Health Workforce Act of 2018

 
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to establish guidelines for credentialing environmental health workers and to create a plan to develop the environmental health workforce. Environmental health workers investigate, assess, and control hazardous environmental agents. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
National Aviation Cadet Museum of the United States Recognition Act

Bill: 115-s-2617
Sponsor: Sen. Boozman, John [R-AR]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

National Aviation Cadet Museum of the United States Recognition Act

 
This bill recognizes the Aviation Cadet Museum in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, as the National Aviation Cadet Museum of the United States.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
ABCs in School Discipline Act

Bill: 115-s-2618
Sponsor: Sen. Rubio, Marco [R-FL]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Assault and harassment offenses
Criminal justice information and records
Domestic violence and child abuse
Elementary and secondary education
Firearms and explosives
Law enforcement officers
Violent crime

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Asserting Basic Common-sense Coordination in School Discipline Act or the ABCs in School Discipline Act

 
This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to prevent state and local educational agencies that receive certain federal funds from implementing a policy that discourages: (1) schools from reporting a disciplinary action to law enforcement, or (2) law enforcement from making certain arrests.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Agricultural Energy Programs Reauthorization Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2619
Sponsor: Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Agricultural education
Agricultural practices and innovations
Alternative and renewable resources
Congressional oversight
Energy storage, supplies, demand
Fires
Food supply, safety, and labeling
Forests, forestry, trees
Manufacturing
Research administration and funding
Rural conditions and development

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Agricultural Energy Programs Reauthorization Act of 2018 

 
This bill amends the Farm Security Rural Investment Act of 2002 to reauthorize through FY2023 several Department of Agriculture (USDA) energy programs, including:
 
 
 the Biobased Markets Program; 
 
the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program; 
 
 the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels; 
 
the Rural Energy For America Program (REAP); 
 
the Biomass Research and Development Initiative; 
 
the Feedstock Flexibility Program; and 
 
the Community Wood Energy Program. 
 
 
The bill modifies and reauthorizes the Biomass Crop Assistance Program to:
 
 
rename it the Biofuels and Biobased Product Feedstock and Wildland Fire Protection Program; 
 
require USDA to provide assistance under the program for hazardous woody fuel reduction projects; and
 
 expand the definition of eligible materials to include algae and animal waste byproducts, including fat, oil, grease, and manure. 
 
 
The bill provides mandatory funding through FY2023 for several of the reauthorized programs. 
 
The bill modifies the Biobased Markets Program to: (1) include producers of renewable chemicals in the voluntary labeling program, and (2) require USDA and the Department of Commerce to jointly develop North American Industry Classification system codes for renewable chemical manufacturers and biobased products manufacturers.
 
The bill modifies REAP to prohibit more than 30% of the funds from being used each year for: (1) any one form of renewable energy, or (2) technologies to improve the efficiency of energy usage. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Federal Cyber Joint Duty Program Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2620
Sponsor: Sen. Peters, Gary C. [D-MI]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Computer security and identity theft
Computers and information technology
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Intergovernmental relations

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Federal Cyber Joint Duty Program Act of 2018

 
This bill requires the Office of Personnel Management to develop a list of joint cyber positions (which are positions in the competitive service that require or provide experience with information technology, cybersecurity, or other cyber-related functions that relate to multiple agencies) that shall be distributed annually to federal agencies. Each agency may designate a joint cyber position as a rotational cyber position, which will allow an employee serving in a cyber position to submit an application for a competitive appointment to a rotational cyber position in that agency or another agency.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Protecting America's Workers Act

Bill: 115-s-2621
Sponsor: Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-WI]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Administrative remedies
Business records
Civil actions and liability
Congressional oversight
Criminal procedure and sentencing
Department of Labor
Employment discrimination and employee rights
Evidence and witnesses
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Inflation and prices
Intergovernmental relations
Judicial review and appeals
Labor-management relations
Legal fees and court costs
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
State and local government operations
Wages and earnings
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Protecting America's Workers Act

 
This bill amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) to increase the scope of the Act by applying its coverage to federal, state, and local government employees or individuals performing work for such employees. However, the bill makes OSHA inapplicable to working conditions covered by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.
 
The bill revises requirements governing worker protection, including by:
 
 
increasing protections for whistle-blowers as well as employees participating in or aiding inspections;
 
directing employers to furnish a hazard-free place of employment to all individuals, not just employees;
 
requiring the posting of employee rights concerning protection from retaliation;
 
requiring site logs of employees' work-related injuries and illnesses, including those of employees of other employers and contractors;
 
directing employers to report work-related deaths or hospitalizations;
 
 prohibiting employers from discouraging accurate record keeping and reporting of work-related injuries or illnesses;
 
requiring the Department of Labor to investigate an incident in the workplace that results in the death of an employee or one that results in the hospitalization of two or more employees; 
 
establishing rights for victims, or representatives of victims, with respect to inspections or investigations of work-related bodily injuries or deaths; 
 
setting the permitted period for employers to correct serious, willful, or repeated violations while citations for the violations are being contested;
 
increasing civil and criminal penalties for certain violations;
 
expanding enforcement requirements relating to state occupational safety and health plans, including by allowing Labor concurrent enforcement authority in states where the state plans fail to meet minimum requirements; and 
 
expanding requirements for workplace health hazard evaluations by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. 



Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to require directors of medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs to submit plans to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on how to improve such facilities, and for other purposes.

Bill: 115-s-2622
Sponsor: Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Department of Veterans Affairs
Government studies and investigations
Health care quality
Health facilities and institutions
Veterans' medical care

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 
This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to require each director of a VA medical facility to submit a plan to improve such facility in such a fashion as would result in the facility obtaining a VA five-star rating.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to require the Secretary of Transportation to modify hours of service requirements to include all fish in the definition of "agricultural commodity", and for other purposes.

Bill: 115-s-2623
Sponsor: Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 
This bill directs the Department of Transportation to modify regulations relating to hours of service requirements for drivers to ensure that the definition of `agricultural commodity' includes fish, whether or not used for food.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
EQIP Improvement Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2624
Sponsor: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Agricultural conservation and pollution
Agricultural prices, subsidies, credit
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Land use and conservation
Public contracts and procurement
Water quality
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

EQIP Improvement Act of 2018 

 
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to modify the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). (EQIP provides financial and technical assistance for agricultural producers and land owners to implement certain conservation practices.) 
 
The bill modifies EQIP to: 
 
 
 reduce the maximum federal cost-share from 75% to 40% for specified practices, 
 
 repeal the requirement for at least 60% of the funds made available for EQIP payments to be targeted at practices relating to livestock production, and
 
 reduce the five-year EQIP payment cap from $450,000 to $150,000.
 
 
The bill also requires USDA to: (1) coordinate the program with the conservation effects assessments carried out by USDA, and (2) revise the guidance issued to states for allocating funds to require data regarding environmental concerns to be used as a primary factor to prioritize projects. 
 
USDA must prioritize EQIP applications that consist only of the performance of certain land management or vegetative practices that are a cost-effective means of addressing the most pressing impairments that threaten to degrade or impair water quality, water quantity, soil or related natural resources within a local watershed, or a specific natural resource boundary. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
AMP Act

Bill: 115-s-2625
Sponsor: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Intellectual property
Licensing and registrations
Music
Sound recording

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Allocation for Music Producers Act or the AMP Act

 
This bill authorizes royalties for producers, mixers, and sound engineers who made a creative contribution to a sound recording. A nonprofit collective designated by the Copyright Royalty Board shall adopt procedures for such royalty payments for various digital transmissions of the recording. 
 
The procedures shall allow the owner of the exclusive right to publicly perform the sound recording or the featured artist to instruct the collective to calculate and distribute the payments to the producers, mixers, and sound engineers. The instruction is called a "letter of direction."
 
For sound recordings fixed before November 1, 1995, the nonprofit collective shall adopt policies for collecting and distributing such royalties, even without a letter of direction. The collective and those seeking royalties shall attempt to contact the featured artist to get a letter of direction; however, if the artist does not object within a specified time frame, the collective may distribute the royalties. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-05-15
text: Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
TEST Act

Bill: 115-s-2626
Sponsor: Sen. Young, Todd [R-IN]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Health

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Testing, Evaluating, and Strengthening Treatments Act or the TEST Act

 
This bill reauthorizes through FY2022 the National Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory grant program and otherwise revises the program, including by adding a matching funds requirement.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Ammunition Background Check Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2627
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Business records
Civil actions and liability
Crimes against property
Criminal justice information and records
Department of Justice
Firearms and explosives
Law enforcement officers
Licensing and registrations
Retail and wholesale trades
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Ammunition Background Check Act of 2018

 
This bill establishes new federal requirements for ammunition sales. 
 
Among other things, the bill does the following:
 
 
establishes background check requirements,
 
expands recordkeeping requirements, and
 
establishes reporting requirements for certain bulk sales.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act

Bill: 115-s-2628
Sponsor: Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Federal-Indian relations
Indian lands and resources rights
Massachusetts

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act

 
This bill reaffirms the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe reservation as trust land in Massachusetts.
 
In addition, the bill requires actions, including actions pending in federal court, relating to the land to be dismissed.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate
Postal Service Reform Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-2629
Sponsor: Sen. Carper, Thomas R. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2018-03-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: 

Postal Service Reform Act of 2018

 
This bill directs the Office of Personnel Management to establish the Postal Service Health Benefits Program (PSHBP) within the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program for all postal employees and annuitants. All Medicare-eligible postal annuitants and employees enrolled in PSHBP must also enroll in Medicare, including parts A, B, and D.
 
The bill eliminates the existing statutory pension payment schedule, cancels any outstanding payments, and amortizes payments over 40 years.
 
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) may establish a program to enter into agreements with an agency of any state government, local government, or tribal government to provide property and services on behalf of such agencies for non-commercial products and services. Distilled spirits, wine, or malt beverages shall be considered mailable if specified conditions apply.
 
The USPS shall submit to its Board of Governors: (1) a plan describing the actions it intends to take to achieve long-term solvency, and (2) a financial plan and budget consistent with that goal. The USPS must establish reasonable targets for performance to ensure that mail service for postal customers meets the service standards for market-dominant products.
 
There is established within USPS the position of Chief Innovation Officer. The USPS must submit to Congress and to the Postal Regulatory Commission a comprehensive strategy for maximizing revenues through innovative products and services.
 
The bill provides for emergency suspensions of post offices.
 
There is established in the USPS the Office of the Inspector General.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-04-09
text: Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 366.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in the Senate. Read the first time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under Read the First Time.
action_date: 2018-03-22
text: Introduced in Senate