hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Protecting American Innovation and Development Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-39
Sponsor: Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK]
Introduced: 2021-01-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance
Subjects: Alternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitration
Consumer affairs
Government information and archives
Intellectual property
Licensing and registrations
Manufacturing
Retail and wholesale trades
Technology transfer and commercialization
Telephone and wireless communication
Trade restrictions

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: 

Protecting American Innovation and Development Act of 2021

 
This bill authorizes import controls against certain foreign persons that infringe patents belonging to a U.S. person that are essential to a wireless communications standard. 
 
Specifically, the Department of Commerce must create a list of foreign entities that are citizens or nationals of a country of concern and that engage in the unlicensed use (i.e., infringement) of such essential wireless communications patents. A 
country of concern
 is a country wherein the persistent infringement of these patents poses a threat to (1) U.S. wireless communications research and development infrastructure, and (2) U.S. national security.
 
Any foreign entity on this list, as well as specified persons that raise a national security concern with respect to wireless communications technology, may be subject to import controls (for example, a foreign entity may be required to post a bond before importing into the United States any goods that potentially infringe the wireless patent in question).
 
Commerce must also establish a watch list of foreign entities from a country of concern that (1) are selling in the United States a product claiming to comply with a wireless standard, and (2) have not obtained a license (or taken certain actions to obtain that license) for patents essential to that wireless standard.
 
An entity on either list may petition Commerce to be removed from that list on the basis that the conditions that led to its inclusion no longer exist. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act

Bill: 117-s-40
Sponsor: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2021-01-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Subjects: Advisory bodies
Civics education
Constitution and constitutional amendments
Government liability
Government studies and investigations
Human rights
Racial and ethnic relations
State and local government operations
U.S. history
War crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: 

Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act

 
This bill establishes the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans. The commission shall examine slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies.
 
The commission shall identify (1) the role of the federal and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery, (2) forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants, and (3) lingering negative effects of slavery on living African Americans and society.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Ally's Act

Bill: 117-s-41
Sponsor: Sen. Capito, Shelley Moore [R-WV]
Introduced: 2021-01-25 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Employee benefits and pensions
Health care costs and insurance
Health care coverage and access
Health technology, devices, supplies
Hearing, speech, and vision care
Medical tests and diagnostic methods
Surgery and anesthesia

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: 

Ally's Act
 

 This bill requires private health insurance plans to cover certain hearing devices and systems (e.g., bone-anchored auditory implants) and related items and services. The bill also imposes limits on cost sharing.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-01-25
text: Introduced in Senate
Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act

Bill: 117-s-42
Sponsor: Sen. Toomey, Patrick [R-PA]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Immigration
Subjects: Border security and unlawful immigration
Citizenship and naturalization
Detention of persons
Economic development
Housing and community development funding
Immigration status and procedures
Intergovernmental relations
Law enforcement administration and funding
State and local finance
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act

 
This bill prohibits a sanctuary jurisdiction from receiving grants under certain Economic Development Assistance Programs and the Community Development Block Grant Program. Under the bill, a
 sanctuary jurisdiction
 is a state or local government that has in effect a statute, policy, or practice that prohibits or restricts (1) information sharing with another government entity about an individual's immigration status, or (2) compliance with a lawfully issued Department of Homeland Security (DHS) detainer request or notification of release request.
 
 When complying with a DHS-issued detainer, a state or local government shall be deemed to be acting as an agent of DHS with all authority available to DHS officers and employees. The bill also limits the legal liability of a state or local government for complying with a detainer.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act

Bill: 117-s-43
Sponsor: Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Charitable contributions
Elementary and secondary education
Employment and training programs
Government information and archives
Higher education
Income tax credits
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations
Student aid and college costs
Vocational and technical education

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act

 
This bill allows individual and corporate taxpayers a tax credit for cash contributions to certain scholarship-granting and workforce training organizations. It imposes a cap of $10 billion on the sum of contributions that qualify for a tax credit under this bill. 
 
The bill requires the Department of Education, in coordination with the Departments of the Treasury and Labor, to establish, host, and maintain a web portal that (1) lists all eligible scholarship-granting and workforce training organizations; (2) enables contributions to such organizations; (3) provides information about the benefits of this bill; and (4) enables a state to submit and update information about its programs and educational organizations, including information on student eligibility and allowable educational expenses.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Student Empowerment Act

Bill: 117-s-44
Sponsor: Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Academic performance and assessments
Bank accounts, deposits, capital
Elementary and secondary education
Higher education
Income tax exclusion
Special education
Student aid and college costs
Teaching, teachers, curricula

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Student Empowerment Act 

 
This bill allows tax-exempt distributions from qualified tuition programs (known as 529 plans) to be used for additional educational expenses in connection with enrollment or attendance at an elementary or secondary school. 
 
(Under current law, distributions in connection with an elementary or secondary school are limited to tuition for a public, private, or religious school.) The bill allows the distributions to be used for additional educational expenses, including
 
 
curriculum and curricular materials, 
 
books or other instructional materials, 
 
online educational materials, 
 
tutoring or educational classes outside the home, 
 
testing fees, 
 
fees for dual enrollment in an institution of higher education, and 
 
educational therapies for students with disabilities.
 
 
Distributions may also be used for tuition and the purposes above in connection with a homeschool (whether treated as a homeschool or a private school under state law).


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
School Security Enhancement Act

Bill: 117-s-45
Sponsor: Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Building construction
Child safety and welfare
Crimes against children
Education programs funding
Educational facilities and institutions
Elementary and secondary education
Firearms and explosives
Violent crime

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

School Security Enhancement Act

 
This bill allows local educational agencies to use specified portions of Student Support and Academic Enrichment grants for planning and designing school buildings and facilities, installing infrastructure, and implementing other measures to strengthen security on school premises. 
 
Further, the bill prohibits the use of these grant funds for the provision of a firearm or training in the use of a firearm.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
APP Act

Bill: 117-s-47
Sponsor: Sen. Rubio, Marco [R-FL]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Africa
Asia
Business records
Caribbean area
China
Civil actions and liability
Computer security and identity theft
Computers and information technology
Congressional oversight
Consumer affairs
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Cuba
Europe
Evidence and witnesses
Federal preemption
Foreign and international corporations
Fraud offenses and financial crimes
Government information and archives
Intelligence activities, surveillance, classified information
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Iran
Latin America
Middle East
North Korea
Right of privacy
Russia
State and local government operations
Sudan
Syria
Telephone and wireless communication
Terrorism
Venezuela

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Adversarial Platform Prevention Act of 2021 or the APP Act

 
 This bill establishes requirements for owners and operators of certain software (e.g., TikTok) from specified countries who make their software available to consumers in the United States.
 
 Specifically, before making such software available for download, the software must provide users with a warning that includes the name of the owner and the owner's country of principal operation. Further, owners of such software must annually disclose to the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice certain information about the consumer data of U.S. users, including any data protection measures in place and any internal content moderation practices. Such owners may not collect or store data from U.S. users if they comply with any requests from specified foreign governments to disclose consumer data about U.S. users or any requests from such governments to censor U.S. users.
 
 The protections from liability for third-party publishers of content are not applicable to owners of foreign software who are subject to the requirements of this bill.
 
 Such software owners in violation of these requirements are subject to civil penalties enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and may be subject to criminal penalties for intentional violations.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Balanced Budget Accountability Act

Bill: 117-s-48
Sponsor: Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Congress
Subjects: Budget deficits and national debt
Budget process
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Income tax rates
Legislative rules and procedure
Members of Congress

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Balanced Budget Accountability Act

 
This bill requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), upon adoption by a chamber of Congress of a concurrent budget resolution for a fiscal year, to certify to the Speaker of the House of Representatives or the President pro tempore of the Senate whether that chamber has adopted a balanced budget.
 

Balanced budget 
means a concurrent budget resolution providing that for FY2031 and each succeeding fiscal year to which the resolution applies total outlays do not exceed total receipts and are not more than 18% of the projected domestic product for such fiscal year.
 
The bill requires the salary of Members of Congress to be held in escrow if OMB determines a chamber has not adopted a balanced budget for FY2022 before April 16, 2021, and for FY2023 before April 16, 2022. The bill also provides for the release of these funds to the Members. 
 
Beginning in FY2024, if OMB does not certify that a chamber has adopted a balanced budget before April 16 of the prior fiscal year, each Member of that chamber shall be paid at the rate of $1 annually for pay periods after that date in the same calendar year.
 
 The bill also requires that legislation in either chamber to increase revenue be agreed upon by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of that chamber.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
No CFPB in the PPP Act

Bill: 117-s-49
Sponsor: Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Accounting and auditing
Banking and financial institutions regulation
Business expenses
Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Civil actions and liability
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Consumer credit
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Government lending and loan guarantees
Government studies and investigations
Infectious and parasitic diseases
Small business
User charges and fees
Wages and earnings

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

No CFPB in the PPP Act 

 
This bill prohibits the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from exercising oversight authority over a lender regarding its participation in the Paycheck Protection Program. The Paycheck Protection Program was established in response to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic and facilitates loans to small businesses.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Venezuela Temporary Protected Status Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-50
Sponsor: Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Immigration
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Congressional oversight
Due process and equal protection
Foreign aid and international relief
Foreign labor
Immigration status and procedures
International organizations and cooperation
Latin America
Refugees, asylum, displaced persons
Travel and tourism
User charges and fees
Venezuela

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Venezuela Temporary Protected Status Act of 2021 

 
This bill provides assistance to eligible nationals of Venezuela.
 
Under this bill, eligible nationals of Venezuela shall qualify for temporary protected status, which prevents their removal from the United States and allows them to obtain employment and travel authorization. Such status shall be available to qualifying nationals of Venezuela for 18 months starting from this bill's enactment.
 
The Department of State shall work with international partners to increase the capacity of countries in the region to provide migration services and asylum to eligible Venezuelan citizens.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Washington, D.C. Admission Act

Bill: 117-s-51
Sponsor: Sen. Carper, Thomas R. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Congressional districts and representation
Congressional elections
Constitution and constitutional amendments
District of Columbia
Elections, voting, political campaign regulation
Government buildings, facilities, and property
House of Representatives
Legislative rules and procedure
Members of Congress
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Washington, D.C. Admission Act
 
 
This bill provides for admission into the United States of the state of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth, composed of most of the territory of the District of Columbia. The commonwealth shall be admitted to the Union on an equal footing with the other states. 
 
The Mayor of the District of Columbia shall issue a proclamation for the first elections to Congress of two Senators and one Representative of the commonwealth. 
 
The bill applies current District laws to the commonwealth and continues pending judicial proceedings. 
 
The commonwealth (1) shall consist of all District territory, with specified exclusions for federal buildings and monuments, including the principal federal monuments, the White House, the Capitol Building, the U.S. Supreme Court Building, and the federal executive, legislative, and judicial office buildings located adjacent to the Mall and the Capitol Building; and (2) may not impose taxes on federal property except as Congress permits.
 
District territory excluded from the commonwealth shall be known as the Capital and shall be the seat of the federal government. The bill maintains the federal government's authority over military lands and specified other property.
 
The bill provides for expedited consideration of a joint resolution repealing the Twenty-third Amendment to the Constitution, which provides for the appointment of electors of the President and Vice President.
 
The bill continues certain federal authorities and responsibilities, including regarding employee benefits, agencies, courts, and college tuition assistance, until the commonwealth certifies that it is prepared to take over the authorities and responsibilities.
 
The bill establishes the Statehood Transition Commission to advise the President, Congress, and District and commonwealth leaders on the transition.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-06-22
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Hearings held.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Gateway to Careers Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-52
Sponsor: Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Adult education and literacy
Child care and development
Drug, alcohol, tobacco use
Education programs funding
Employment and training programs
Health care costs and insurance
Health care coverage and access
Higher education
Mental health
Teaching, teachers, curricula
Vocational and technical education

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Gateway to Careers Act of 2021

 
This bill establishes a career pathway grant program through which the Department of Education must award competitive grants to certain public institutions of higher education and postsecondary technical education schools. Grant recipients must use these funds to (1) carry out activities that support the development and implementation of career pathway programs, and (2) provide support services to students engaged in career pathway programs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate
Raise the Wage Act of 2021

Bill: 117-s-53
Sponsor: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
Introduced: 2021-01-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Disability and paralysis
Government information and archives
Labor standards
Wages and earnings

Summary:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: 

Raise the Wage Act of 2021

 
This bill increases the federal minimum wage for regular employees over a 5-year period, for tipped employees, and for newly hired employees who are less than 20 years old. 
 
The bill sets forth a schedule of annual increases in the federal minimum wage for individuals with disabilities. The Department of Labor shall no longer issue special certificates for the payment of subminimum wages to such individuals after the final wage increase under this bill for such individuals takes effect. 
 
Labor shall provide, upon request, technical assistance and information to employers to (1) help them transition their practices to comply with wage increases and other requirements under this bill for individuals with disabilities, and (2) ensure continuing employment opportunities for such individuals.
 
The bill eliminates the separate minimum wage requirements for tipped, newly hired, and disabled employees. After a specified period, these employees shall be paid the same minimum wage as regular employees.
 
Labor must publish any increase in the minimum wage in the Federal Register and on its website 60 days before it takes effect.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2021-01-26
text: Introduced in Senate