hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Increasing American Jobs Through Greater Exports to Africa Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-1022
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance
Subjects: Africa
Building construction
Business investment and capital
Competitiveness, trade promotion, trade deficits
Computers and information technology
Congressional oversight
Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
Economic development
Export-Import Bank of the United States
Federal officials
Free trade and trade barriers
Government corporations and government-sponsored enterprises
Government lending and loan guarantees
Infrastructure development
Interest, dividends, interest rates
Multilateral development programs
Product safety and quality
Public contracts and procurement
Small Business Administration
Small business
Trade agreements and negotiations
U.S. and foreign investments

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Increasing American Jobs Through Greater Exports to Africa Act of 2021

 
This bill requires the President and specified agencies to take certain actions to increase U.S. exports to Africa.
 
Specifically, the bill directs the President to establish a comprehensive U.S. strategy for public and private investment, trade, and development in Africa. The focus of this strategy must include (1) increasing exports of U.S. goods and services to Africa by at least 200% in real dollar value within 10 years, (2) promoting the alignment of U.S. commercial interests with development priorities in Africa, and (3) improving the competitiveness of U.S. businesses in Africa.
 
Additionally, the bill directs the President to
 
 
designate a Special Africa Export Strategy Coordinator;
 
develop a plan for standardized training of foreign service and economic officers; and
 
explore opportunities to negotiate bilateral, subregional, and regional agreements to encourage trade and eliminate nontariff barriers to trade between countries. 
 
 
The bill requires the Department of Commerce to ensure specified levels of United States and Foreign Commercial Service officers in Africa.
 
The bill directs the Export-Import Bank to increase the amount of financing for projects in Africa. The bank must also make capitalization available annually for loans that compete against certain foreign loans.
 
The Small Business Administration's Office of International Trade must work closely with the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee, among others, in maintaining a trade distribution network.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. (text: CR S1826-1828)
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Computer and Internet Access Equity Act

Bill: 117-s-1023
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Assault and harassment offenses
Community life and organization
Computer security and identity theft
Computers and information technology
Congressional oversight
Consumer affairs
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Foreign language and bilingual programs
Government information and archives
Income tax credits
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Marketing and advertising
Poverty and welfare assistance
Right of privacy
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
Telecommunication rates and fees

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Computer and Internet Access Equity Act

 
This bill increases broadband service support for low-income consumers, establishes a grant program to provide internet safety education or training, and provides a tax credit for certain computer and education costs.
 
Specifically, the bill modifies the broadband service support program known as Lifeline, which assists low-income consumers with access to telecommunications and broadband services, to (1) increase the amount of the payments that a provider of Lifeline services may receive for each low-income consumer to whom the provider supplies such services, (2) allow consumers with higher incomes to qualify for participation in the program, and (3) allow a broadband service provider to receive Lifeline support for providing such service to a low-income consumer without being designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier. 
 
The bill also requires the Federal Communications Commission to establish a grant program to develop and implement internet education and training programs for low-income individuals.
 
Further, the bill provides a refundable tax credit, not to exceed $2,000 ($4,000 in the case of a joint return) in a taxable year or $10,000 in a lifetime ($20,000 in the case of a joint return), for amounts paid or incurred for computers, printers, and other education-related technology. The Department of the Treasury must establish a program for making advance payments of such credit to eligible individuals.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text: CR S1828-1830)
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act

Bill: 117-s-1024
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Immigration
Subjects: Administrative remedies
Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Department of Homeland Security
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Employee hiring
Foreign labor
Health personnel
Immigration status and procedures
Infectious and parasitic diseases
Nursing
Visas and passports

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act

 
This bill makes previously unused immigrant visas available to nurses and physicians who petition for such a visa before the date that is 90 days after the end of the declared national emergency relating to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) outbreak. 
 
The number of visas available shall be the total number of unused employment-based immigrant visas from FY1992-FY2020, up to 40,000. Of such visas, 25,000 shall be reserved for nurses and 15,000 for physicians. Certain family members may accompany the principal beneficiary of a visa provided under this bill, and visas for such family members shall (1) be made available from the unused visas from FY1992-FY2020, and (2) not be counted against the 40,000 cap. 
 
Visas provided under this bill shall be exempt from per-country limitations. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Toxic Exposure Safety Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-1025
Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Administrative remedies
Advisory bodies
Appropriations
Cancer
Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Census and government statistics
Congressional oversight
Department of Energy
Digestive and metabolic diseases
Education programs funding
Environmental health
Executive agency funding and structure
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances
Health information and medical records
Higher education
Medical research
Medical tests and diagnostic methods
Military procurement, research, weapons development
Musculoskeletal and skin diseases
Neurological disorders
Nuclear weapons
Personnel records
Public contracts and procurement
Radiation
Research administration and funding
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Toxic Exposure Safety Act of 2021

 
This bill expands an existing program that compensates Department of Energy (DOE) employees and contractors for illnesses caused by occupational exposure to radiation and certain substances.
 
Specifically, the bill requires the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program to cover additional workers with illnesses caused by exposure to toxic substances at certain DOE facilities, including cleanup sites. The Department of Health and Human Services must establish rules for determining whether a current or former DOE employee or contractor is entitled to compensation. 
In addition, the Department of Labor must create or update assessments of toxic substance exposure in each DOE facility, as well as carry out outreach activities to provide DOE workers with information about the program. 
The bill also appropriates funds as necessary for DOE's assistance with certain Labor activities related to DOE facilities.
 
Furthermore, the bill requires research on diseases associated with toxic substance exposure at DOE facilities.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
American Apprenticeship Act

Bill: 117-s-1026
Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Education programs funding
Employment and training programs
Government studies and investigations
Higher education
Performance measurement
State and local government operations
Vocational and technical education

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

American Apprenticeship Act

 
This bill authorizes the Department of Labor to make grants to assist states in carrying out projects that defray the cost of instruction associated with pre-apprenticeship and qualified apprenticeship programs.
 
Labor shall (1) establish performance measures and an evaluation system for such grant program; and (2) identify in-demand occupations that lack the use of qualified apprenticeship programs, analyze the use of such program model in those occupations, and report on such analysis to states and Congress.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Tax Assistance for Crumbling Foundations Act

Bill: 117-s-1027
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Income tax deductions
Life, casualty, property insurance
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Tax Assistance for Crumbling Foundations Act

 
This bill repeals the tax rule in effect through 2025 that limits the deduction for personal casualty losses to losses attributable to a federally declared disaster. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Crumbling Foundations Small Business and Homeowners Assistance Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-1028
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Housing and Community Development
Subjects: Building construction
Cooperative and condominium housing
Housing and community development funding
Housing finance and home ownership
Materials
Metals
Residential rehabilitation and home repair
Small business

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Crumbling Foundations Small Business and Homeowners Assistance Act of 2021

 
This bill requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency to award grants for states to assist homeowners, small-business owners, and condominium associations in preventing, mitigating, and repairing structural damage to concrete foundations that contain pyrrhotite (an iron sulfide mineral linked to crumbling foundations).


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
SHAME Act

Bill: 117-s-1029
Sponsor: Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Abortion
Asia
China
Congressional oversight
Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
Family planning and birth control
Foreign property
Government information and archives
Human rights
Political parties and affiliation
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
Racial and ethnic relations
Religion
Sanctions
Visas and passports
War and emergency powers

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Sanctioning and Highlighting Authoritarian Medicine and Eugenics Act of 2021 or the SHAME Act

 
This bill imposes sanctions on individuals and entities responsible for carrying out coercive policies to limit births in China's Xinjiang province.
 
Specifically, the Department of State shall annually report to Congress the identities of any Chinese government official or agency or any member of the Chinese Communist Party that knowingly orders, controls, or routinely carries out such coercive policies in Xinjiang, such as requiring involuntary abortions or mandatory contraception use. The State Department shall also publish a list of the named entities and individuals on its website in English and Mandarin Chinese. 
 
The President shall impose property-blocking sanctions on the individuals and entities named in the report, as well as visa-blocking sanctions on the named individuals. An individual or entity that violates, attempts to violate, or conspires to violate the sanctions provided under this bill may be subject to civil and criminal penalties.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
No Fencing at the United States Capitol Complex Act

Bill: 117-s-1030
Sponsor: Sen. Blunt, Roy [R-MO]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Congress
Subjects: Building construction
Congressional agencies
Congressional officers and employees
Government Operations and Politics
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Library of Congress
Members of Congress
Protection of officials
U.S. Capitol
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

No Fencing at the United States Capitol Complex Act

 
This bill prohibits the use of federal funds for permanent fencing around the perimeter of any U.S. Capitol buildings or grounds.
 
On January 7, 2021, in response to the previous day's events, razor wire fencing was erected to secure the perimeter of the U.S. Capitol; the fencing was initially to remain in place for 30 days and has since been kept in place through periodic extensions.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill direct the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library to obtain a statue of Shirley Chisholm for placement in the United States Capitol.

Bill: 117-s-1032
Sponsor: Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Congress
Subjects: Art, artists, authorship
Congressional tributes
Government buildings, facilities, and property
House of Representatives
Members of Congress
New York City
U.S. Capitol
U.S. history

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 
This bill requires the Joint Committee on the Library to enter into an agreement to obtain a statue of Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman elected to Congress.
 
 The committee shall place the statue in a permanent public location in the U.S. Capitol.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
CONNECT Act

Bill: 117-s-1033
Sponsor: Sen. Peters, Gary C. [D-MI]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Social Welfare
Subjects: Child safety and welfare
Congressional oversight
Criminal justice information and records
Government information and archives
Juvenile crime and gang violence
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Childhood Outcomes Need New Efficient Community Teams or the CONNECT Act

 
This bill authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services, in collaboration with the Department of Justice, to award grants jointly to state child welfare and juvenile justice agencies to collaborate on data collection related to, and address the needs of, dual-status youth and their families. These are children who have come into contact with both child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
 
Among other application requirements, the agencies must identify senior officials from their agencies and other relevant youth- and family-serving entities that will manage and oversee grant activities.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Financing Our Energy Future Act

Bill: 117-s-1034
Sponsor: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Air quality
Alternative and renewable resources
Climate change and greenhouse gases
Corporate finance and management
Electric power generation and transmission
Energy storage, supplies, demand
Lighting, heating, cooling
Motor fuels
Nuclear power
Solid waste and recycling
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Financing Our Energy Future Act

 
The bill extends the tax treatment of certain publicly traded partnerships as corporations to renewable and alternative energy projects, transportation fuels, and nuclear-generated electricity facilities. Under current law the tax treatment of such partnerships is only available to investors in energy portfolios for oil, natural gas, coal extraction, and pipeline projects.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Workforce DATA Act

Bill: 117-s-1035
Sponsor: Sen. Peters, Gary C. [D-MI]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Advisory bodies
Census and government statistics
Congressional oversight
Employment and training programs
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Industrial facilities
Industrial policy and productivity
Labor market
Technology assessment
Unemployment

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Workforce Data for Analyzing and Tracking Automation Act of 2021 or the Workforce DATA Act

 
This bill provides for a study by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine on measuring the impact of automation on the workforce.
 
Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Labor to request the academies to enter into an arrangement to conduct a consensus study on how to measure the impact of automation on the workforce, including job creation, job displacement, job retention, and the shifting of skills in demand due to automation.
 
In addition, Labor must establish an advisory board, or form a subcommittee of an existing advisory board, to provide recommendations on addressing the impact of automation on the workforce.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Rural Reasonable and Comparable Wireless Access Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-1036
Sponsor: Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Congressional oversight
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Rural conditions and development
Telecommunication rates and fees
Telephone and wireless communication

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Rural Reasonable and Comparable Wireless Access Act of 2021

 
This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission to establish a national standard&#8212;informed by data gathered on mobile broadband service in the 20 most populous metropolitan areas in the United States&#8212;to determine whether the mobile broadband service available in rural areas is reasonably comparable to that of urban areas.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Regional Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-1038
Sponsor: Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Air quality
Climate change and greenhouse gases
Congressional oversight
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Environmental health
Executive agency funding and structure
Government information and archives
Regional and metropolitan planning
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 

Regional Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act of 2021

 
This bill establishes an Office of Regional Greenhouse Gas Reduction Programs within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a grant program to support regional greenhouse gas reduction programs, and an interagency task force.
 
The office must support existing regional greenhouse gas reduction programs and facilitate the establishment of new regional greenhouse gas reduction programs. Such programs use market-based tools to reduce greenhouse gases across states at the regional level.
 
In addition, the office must establish a program that awards grants to a state, local government, or regional consortium of such governments to take preliminary steps towards developing or participating in a regional greenhouse gas reduction program.
 
Finally, the EPA must establish an interagency task force to support new and existing regional programs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve compensation for disabilities occurring in Persian Gulf War veterans, and for other purposes.

Bill: 117-s-1039
Sponsor: Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2021-03-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Afghanistan
Asia
Conflicts and wars
Department of Veterans Affairs
Disability assistance
Egypt
Europe
Health personnel
Israel
Jordan
Medical tests and diagnostic methods
Middle East
Military operations and strategy
Syria
Turkey
Veterans' medical care
Veterans' pensions and compensation

Summary:
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: 
This bill addresses disability compensation and care issues for Persian Gulf War veterans.
 
First, the bill expands eligibility for disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to Persian Gulf War veterans who have a qualifying chronic disability that became manifest to any degree at any time.
 
Next, the VA must develop a Disability Benefits Questionnaire to be used by health care personnel to identify Gulf War illness if a Persian Gulf veteran presents with any one symptom associated with such illness.
 
The bill also expands who qualifies as a Persian Gulf veteran by including those who served in Afghanistan, Israel, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, or Jordan during the Persian Gulf War. Under current law, 
Persian Gulf veteran
 refers only to individuals who served on active duty during the Persian Gulf War in particular areas of the Arabian Peninsula.
 
Finally, the VA must ensure its health care personnel are appropriately trained to provide care to Persian Gulf veterans.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-04-28
text: Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2021-03-25
text: Introduced in Senate