In this task, you are given text for US Congressional and California state bills, your task is to generate a summary for this bill.

Example Input: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Assessing Progress in Haiti Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) On January 12, 2010, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the 
        Richter magnitude scale struck the country of Haiti.
            (2) According to the United States Geological Survey 
        (USGS)--
                    (A) the earthquake epicenter was located 
                approximately 15 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, the 
                capital of Haiti; and
                    (B) the earthquake was followed by 59 aftershocks 
                of magnitude 4.5 or greater, the most severe measuring 
                6.0.
            (3) According to the Government of Haiti, more than 316,000 
        people died as a result of the earthquake, including 103 
        citizens of the United States and more than 100 United Nations 
        personnel.
            (4) According to the United Nations and the International 
        Organization for Migration--
                    (A) an estimated 3,000,000 people were directly 
                affected by the disaster, nearly one-third of the 
                country's population; and
                    (B) more than 2,100,000 people were displaced from 
                their homes to settlements.
            (5) Casualty numbers and infrastructure damage, including 
        to roads, ports, hospitals, and residential dwellings, place 
        the earthquake as the worst cataclysm to hit Haiti in over two 
        centuries and, proportionally, one of the world's worst natural 
        disasters in modern times.
            (6) The Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) conducted by 
        the Government of Haiti, the United Nations, the World Bank, 
        the Inter-American Development Bank, and other experts 
        estimates that damage and economic losses totaled 
        $7,804,000,000, approximately 120 percent of Haiti's gross 
        domestic product in 2009.
            (7) Haiti is the poorest, least developed country in the 
        Western Hemisphere with, prior to the earthquake--
                    (A) more than 70 percent of Haitians living on less 
                than $2 per day; and
                    (B) a ranking of 149 out of 182 countries on the 
                United Nations Human Development Index.
            (8) House Resolution 1021, which was passed on January 21, 
        2010, on a vote of 411 to 1 expressed--
                    (A) the House of Representatives' ``deepest 
                condolences and sympathy for the horrific loss of 
                life'' caused by the earthquake; and
                    (B) bipartisan support for Haiti's recovery and 
                reconstruction.
            (9) The initial emergency response of the men and women of 
        the United States Government, led by the United States Agency 
        for International Development and United States Southern 
        Command, was swift and resolute.
            (10) United States urban search and rescue (USAR) teams 
        were immediately activated after the earthquake and deployed 
        from Fairfax County, Virginia, Los Angeles County, California, 
        Miami-Dade, Florida, the City of Miami, Florida, and Virginia 
        Beach, Virginia, to assist the United States Agency for 
        International Development (USAID) Disaster Assistance Response 
        Team (DART), and New York City's first responders asked the 
        Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) to activate a 
        New York City urban search and rescue shortly thereafter.
            (11) A month after the earthquake, the House of 
        Representatives unanimously passed House Resolution 1059 which 
        expressed gratitude to these USAR units, and highlighted that 
        the 511 United States rescue workers comprised roughly one-
        third of the entire international USAR effort in Haiti, and 
        more than 130 people were rescued from under the rubble in 
        Haiti by these units.
            (12) Individuals, businesses, and philanthropic 
        organizations across the United States and throughout the 
        international community responded in support of Haiti and its 
        populace during this crisis, sometimes in innovative ways such 
        as fundraising through text messaging.
            (13) The Haitian diaspora in the United States, which was 
        integral to emergency relief efforts--
                    (A) has annually contributed significant monetary 
                support to Haiti through remittances; and
                    (B) continues to seek opportunities to partner with 
                the United States Agency for International Development 
                and other agencies to substantively contribute to the 
                reconstruction of Haiti.
            (14) Significant challenges still remain in Haiti as it 
        works to recover and rebuild.
            (15) According to the International Organization for 
        Migration, approximately 680,000 people remain in spontaneous 
        and organized camps in Haiti.
            (16) According to numerous nongovernmental organizations 
        and United States contractors, the pace of reconstruction has 
        lagged significantly behind the original emergency relief 
        phase.
            (17) The widespread irregularities that occurred in the 
        elections held in Haiti on November 28, 2010, led to outbursts 
        of violence which undermined the recovery efforts.
            (18) On October 21, 2010, an outbreak of cholera was 
        detected in the Lower Artibonite region.
            (19) Initial efforts to contain the epidemic were disrupted 
        by Hurricane Tomas and resulting widespread flooding, which led 
        to the spreading and entrenchment of the disease throughout the 
        country.
            (20) According to the Haitian Ministry of Public Health and 
        Population, as of March 28, 2011--
                    (A) approximately 4,766 people have died from 
                cholera; and
                    (B) approximately 270,991 have been infected from 
                the disease.
            (21) According to the Pan American Health Organization and 
        the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cholera could 
        spread to as many as 400,000 people within the first year of 
        the epidemic, potentially causing 7,600 deaths at the current 
        case fatality rate.
            (22) The United States has provided more than $62,523,017 
        worth of assistance to combat the cholera epidemic, including 
        by assisting with stockpiling health commodities, equipping 
        cholera treatments centers, providing public information, and 
        improving water and sanitation systems.
            (23) The efforts to combat the cholera epidemic have helped 
        to drive the mortality rate from cholera down from nearly 7 
        percent to 1.7 percent of all contracted cases as of February 
        25, 2011.
            (24) Throughout the series of crises, the people of Haiti 
        continue to demonstrate unwavering resilience, dignity, and 
        courage.
            (25) On March 20, 2011, presidential and parliamentary 
        elections were held in Haiti without major disruptions or 
        problems.
            (26) At the international donors conference ``Towards a New 
        Future for Haiti'' held on March 31, 2010, 59 donors pledged 
        over $5,000,000,000 to support Haiti.
            (27) The United Nations Office of the Special Envoy for 
        Haiti estimates that nearly $1,900,000,000 has been disbursed, 
        with an additional amount of approximately $2,000,000,000 
        committed.
            (28) Haiti will need the support of the international 
        community in order to confront the ongoing cholera epidemic and 
        to promote reconstruction and development.

SEC. 3. REPORT.

    (a) Report Required.--Not later than six months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the President, in consultation with the 
heads of all relevant agencies, including the Department of State, the 
United States Agency for International Development, the Department of 
Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention shall transmit to Congress a report 
on the status of post-earthquake humanitarian, reconstruction, and 
development efforts in Haiti, including efforts to prevent the spread 
of cholera and treat persons infected with the disease.
    (b) Contents.--The report required by subsection (a) shall include 
a description, analysis, and evaluation of the--
            (1) overall progress of relief, recovery, and 
        reconstruction in Haiti, including--
                    (A) programs and projects of the United States 
                Government;
                    (B) programs and projects to protect vulnerable 
                populations, such as internally displaced persons, 
                children, women and girls, and persons with 
                disabilities; and
                    (C) projects to improve water, sanitation, and 
                health, and plans for improvements in these areas in 
                the long-term;
            (2) extent to which United States and international efforts 
        are in line with the priorities of the Government of Haiti and 
        are actively engaging and working through Haitian ministries 
        and local authorities;
            (3) coordination among United States Government agencies, 
        and coordination between the United States Government and 
        United Nations agencies, international financial institutions, 
        and other bilateral donors;
            (4) mechanisms for communicating the progress of recovery 
        and reconstruction efforts to Haitian citizens, as well as 
        recommendations on how these can be improved;
            (5) mechanisms through which Haitian civil society, 
        including vulnerable populations, is actively participating in 
        all major stages of recovery and reconstruction efforts, and 
        recommendations on how these can be improved;
            (6) mechanisms through which the Haitian diaspora is 
        involved in recovery and reconstruction efforts; and
            (7) suitability of Haiti to receive aliens who are removed, 
        excluded, or deported from the United States pursuant to United 
        States law, and steps Haiti is taking to strengthen its 
        capacity in this regard.
    (c) Use of Previously Appropriated Funds.--Funding for the report 
required under subsection (a) shall derive from existing discretionary 
funds of the departments and agencies specified in such subsection.
Example Output: Assessing Progress in Haiti Act - Directs the President to report to Congress on the status of post-earthquake humanitarian, reconstruction, and development efforts in Haiti, including efforts to prevent the spread of cholera and treat persons infected with the disease.

Requires such report to evaluate: (1) the overall progress of relief, recovery, and reconstruction in Haiti, including U.S. government programs, programs to protect vulnerable populations, and projects to improve water, sanitation, and health; (2) the extent to which U.S. and international efforts are in line with the government of Haiti's priorities and are working through Haitian ministries and local authorities; (3) coordination among U.S. government agencies and coordination between the U.S. government and U.N. agencies, international financial institutions, and other bilateral donors; (4) mechanisms for communicating the progress of recovery and reconstruction to Haitian citizens; (5) mechanisms through which Haitian civil society and the Haitian diaspora are participating in recovery and reconstruction; and (6) Haiti's suitability to receive aliens who are removed, excluded, or deported from the United States and steps Haiti is taking to strengthen its capacity in this regard.

Example Input: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Childrens' Media Protection Act of 
1995''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) On average, a child in the United States is exposed to 
        27 hours of television each week, and some children are exposed 
        to as much as 11 hours of television each day.
            (2) The average American child watches 8,000 murders and 
        100,000 acts of other violence on television by the time the 
        child completes elementary school.
            (3) By the age of 18 years, the average American teenager 
        has watched 200,000 acts of violence on television, including 
        40,000 murders.
            (4) The Times Mirror Center reports that a recent poll of 
        Americans indicates that 72 percent of the American people 
        believe that there is too much violence on television, and, 
        according to a survey by U.S. News and World Report dated May 
        1994, 91 percent of American voters believe that mayhem in the 
        media contributes to violence in real life.
            (5) On several occasions since 1975, The Journal of the 
        American Medical Association has alerted the medical community 
        to the adverse effects of televised violence on child 
        development, including an increase in the level of aggressive 
        behavior and violent behavior among children who view it.
            (6) The National Commission on Children recommended in 1991 
        that producers of television programs exercise greater 
        restraint in the content of programming for children.
            (7) A report of the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, 
        dated May 1993, indicates that there is an irrefutable 
        connection between the amount of violence depicted in the 
        television programs watched by children and increased 
        aggressive behavior among children.
            (8) It is in the National interest that parents be 
        empowered with the technology to block the viewing of 
        television programs whose content is overly violent or 
        objectionable for other reasons.
            (9) Technology currently exists to permit the manufacture 
        of television receivers that are capable of permitting parents 
        to block television programs having violent or otherwise 
        objectionable content.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF TELEVISION VIOLENCE RATING CODE.

    Section 303 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(v) Prescribe, in consultation with television broadcasters, 
cable operators, appropriate public interest groups, and interested 
individuals from the private sector, rules for rating the level of 
violence in television programming, including rules for the 
transmission by television broadcast systems and cable systems of 
signals containing specifications for blocking violent programming.''.

SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT FOR MANUFACTURE OF TELEVISIONS THAT BLOCK PROGRAMS.

    Section 303 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303), as 
amended by section 3, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(w) Require, in the case of apparatus designed to receive 
television signals that are manufactured in the United States or 
imported for use in the United States and that have a picture screen 13 
inches or greater in size (measured diagonally), that such apparatus--
            ``(1) be equipped with circuitry designed to enable viewers 
        to block the display of channels, programs, and time slots; and
            ``(2) enable viewers to block display of all programs with 
        a common rating.''.

SEC. 5. SHIPPING OR IMPORTING OF TELEVISIONS THAT BLOCK PROGRAMS.

    (a) Regulations.--Section 330 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
U.S.C. 330) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
            (2) by adding after subsection (b) the following new 
        subsection (c):
    ``(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), no person shall ship 
in interstate commerce, manufacture, assemble, or import from any 
foreign country into the United States any apparatus described in 
section 303(w) of this Act except in accordance with rules prescribed 
by the Commission pursuant to the authority granted by that section.
    ``(2) This subsection shall not apply to carriers transporting 
apparatus referred to in paragraph (1) without trading it.
    ``(3) The rules prescribed by the Commission under this subsection 
shall provide performance standards for blocking technology. Such rules 
shall require that all such apparatus be able to receive the rating 
signals which have been transmitted by way of line 21 of the vertical 
blanking interval and which conform to the signal and blocking 
specifications established by the Commission.
    ``(4) As new video technology is developed, the Commission shall 
take such action as the Commission determines appropriate to ensure 
that blocking service continues to be available to consumers.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 330(d) of such Act, as 
redesignated by subsection (a)(1), is amended by striking ``section 
303(s), and section 303(u)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``and 
sections 303(s), 303(u), and 303(w)''.

SEC. 6. ELIMINATION OF VIOLENT PROGRAMMING ON TELEVISION DURING CERTAIN 
              HOURS.

    Title I of the Children's Television Act of 1990 (47 U.S.C. 303a et 
seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

                  ``prohibition on violent programming

    ``Sec. 105. (a) The Commission shall, within 30 days of the date of 
the enactment of this Act, initiate a rule-making proceeding to 
prescribe a prohibition on the broadcast on commercial television and 
by public telecommunications entities, including the broadcast by cable 
operators, from the hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., inclusive, of 
programming that contains gratuitous violence.
    ``(b) As used in this section:
            ``(1) The term `cable operator' has the meaning given such 
        term in section 602 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
        U.S.C. 522).
            ``(2) The term `programming' includes advertisements but 
        does not include bona fide newscasts, bona fide news 
        interviews, bona fide news documentaries, and on-the-spot 
        coverage of bona fide news events.
            ``(3) The term `public telecommunications entity' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 397(12) of the 
        Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 397(12)).''.

SEC. 7. BROADCAST ON TELEVISION AND CABLE OF EDUCATIONAL AND 
              INFORMATIONAL PROGRAMMING FOR CHILDREN.

    (a) Broadcast Television.--Section 309 of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 309) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(k) Educational and Information Programming for Children.--In 
granting an application for a license for a television broadcasting 
station (including an application for renewal of such a license), the 
Commission shall impose such conditions upon the applicant as the 
Commission requires in order to ensure that the applicant complies 
under the license with the standards for children's television 
programming established under section 102 of the Children's Television 
Act of 1990 (47 U.S.C. 303a) and otherwise serves the educational and 
informational needs of children through its overall programming.''.
    (b) Cable Service.--Part III of title VI of the Communications Act 
of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 541 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

         ``educational and information programming for children

    ``Sec. 629. A franchise, including the renewal of a franchise, may 
not be awarded under this part unless the cable operator to be awarded 
the franchise agrees to comply with the standards for children's 
television programming established under section 102 of the Children's 
Television Act of 1990 (47 U.S.C. 303a) and to otherwise serve the 
educational and informational needs of children in the provision of 
cable service under the franchise.''.
Example Output: Childrens' Media Protection Act of 1995 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to: (1)  prescribe rules for the rating of violence levels in television programming, including rules for the transmission of signals containing specifications for blocking violent programming; and (2) require television sets with picture screens of 13 inches or more to be equipped with blocking circuitry and enable viewers to block display of all programs with a common rating.  Prohibits any person from shipping, manufacturing, assembling, or importing any television not so equipped.  Requires performance standards for blocking technology. 
(Sec. 6) Directs the FCC to initiate a rulemaking proceeding to prescribe a prohibition on the broadcast on commercial television and any public telecommunications entities between six o'clock a.m. and ten o'clock p.m., inclusively, of programming that contains gratuitous violence. 
(Sec. 7) Directs the FCC, in granting an application for a television broadcast license, to impose conditions which ensure that the applicant complies with the standards for children's television programming as established under the Children's Television Act of 1990 and otherwise serves the educational and informational needs of children through its overall programming.  Prohibits a cable franchise award or renewal unless the cable operator complies with such standards.

Example Input: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Employee Benefits Protection Act of 
2003''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The intent of the Employee Retirement Income Security 
        Act of 1974 to protect the pension and welfare benefits of 
        workers is frustrated by the practice of mislabeling or 
        relabeling employees to improperly exclude them from employee 
        benefit plans. Employees are wrongly denied benefits when they 
        are misclassified or reclassified as temporary employees, part-
        time employees, leased employees, agency employees, staffing 
        firm employees, and independent contractors. If their true 
        employment status were recognized, these misclassified and 
        reclassified employees would be eligible to participate in 
        employee pension and welfare benefit plans because such plans 
        are offered to other employees performing the same or 
        substantially the same work and working for the same employer.
            (2) Mislabeled employees are often paid through staffing, 
        temporary, employee leasing, or other similar firms to give the 
        appearance that the employees do not work for their employer. 
        Employment contracts and reports to government agencies also 
        are used to give the erroneous impression that mislabeled 
        employees work for staffing, temporary, employee leasing, or 
        other similar firms, when the facts of the work arrangement do 
        not meet the common law standard for determining the employment 
        relationship. Employees are also mislabeled as contractors and 
        paid from non-payroll accounts to give the appearance that they 
        are not employees of their employer. These practices violate 
        the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.
            (3) Employers are amending their employee benefit plans to 
        add provisions that exclude mislabeled employees from 
        participation in the plan even in the event that such employees 
        are determined to be common law employees and otherwise 
        eligible to participate in the plan. These plan provisions 
        violate the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.
            (4) As a condition of employment or continued service, 
        employees are often required to sign documents that purport to 
        waive their right to participate in employee benefit plans. 
        Such documents inaccurately claim to limit the authority of the 
        courts and applicable Federal agencies to correct the 
        mislabeling and relabeling of employees and to enforce the 
        terms of plans providing for their participation. This practice 
        violates the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.
            (5) As a condition of continued employment or service, 
        employees are often required to sign documents that purport to 
        waive their right to bring a lawsuit under the Employee 
        Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. Such documents 
        inaccurately claim to limit the ability of the courts and 
        applicable Federal agencies to obtain any payments or benefits 
        in the event that the waiver is found not to be knowing and 
        voluntary. This practice violates the Employee Retirement 
        Income Security Act of 1974.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to clarify applicable 
provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to 
ensure that employees are not improperly excluded from participation in 
employee benefit plans as a result of mislabeling or reclassifying 
their employment status.

SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL STANDARDS RELATING TO MINIMUM PARTICIPATION 
              REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Required Inclusion of Service.--Section 202(a)(3) of the 
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1052(a)(3)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
    ``(E) For purposes of this section, in determining years of service 
and hours of service--
            ``(i) service shall include all service for the employer as 
        an employee under the common law, irrespective of whether the 
        individual--
                    ``(I) is paid through a staffing firm, temporary 
                help firm, payroll agency, employment agency, or other 
                such similar arrangement,
                    ``(II) is paid directly by the employer under an 
                arrangement purporting to characterize an employee 
                under the common law as other than an employee, or
                    ``(III) is paid from an account not designated as a 
                payroll account, and
            ``(ii) in any case in which an employer, plan sponsor, or 
        fiduciary (including any administrator, officer, trustee, or 
        custodian) changes the job classification of any person from 
        employee to leased employee, agency employee, staffing firm 
        employee, independent contractor, or any similar category, in 
        determining years of service and hours of service, service 
        shall include all service for the employer that the person 
        performs subsequent to such reclassification.''.
    (b) Exclusion Precluded When Related to Certain Purported 
Categorizations.--Section 202 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1052) is amended 
further by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a pension plan shall be treated 
as failing to meet the requirements of this section if the plan 
excludes from participation any person who performs the same work (or 
substantially the same work) for the employer as other employees who 
generally are not excluded from participation in the plan, irrespective 
of the placement of such person in any category of workers (such as 
temporary employees, part-time employees, leased employees, agency 
employees, staffing firm employees, independent contractors, or any 
similar category) which may be specified under the plan as ineligible 
for participation.
    ``(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) shall be construed to preclude the 
exclusion from participation in a pension plan of individuals who in 
fact do not meet a minimum service period or minimum age which is 
required under the terms of the plan and which is otherwise in 
conformity with the requirements of this section.''.

SEC. 4. OBJECTIVE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA IN PLAN INSTRUMENTS.

    Section 402 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 
(29 U.S.C. 1102) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
    ``(d)(1) The written instrument pursuant to which an employee 
benefit plan is maintained shall set forth eligibility criteria which--
            ``(A) include and exclude employees on a uniform basis;
            ``(B) are based on reasonable job classifications other 
        than the mere labeling of a job position as something other 
        than an employee; and
            ``(C) are based on objective criteria stated in the 
        instrument itself for the inclusion or exclusion (other than 
        the mere listing of an employee as included or excluded).
    ``(2) No employee benefit plan may permit an employer or plan 
sponsor to exclude any person from participation irrespective of the 
placement of such employee in any category of workers (such as 
temporary employees, leased employees, agency employees, staffing firm 
employees, contractors, or any similar category), if the employee--
            ``(A) is an employee of the employer under the common law;
            ``(B) performs the same work (or substantially the same 
        work) for the employer as other employees who generally are not 
        excluded from participation in the plan; and
            ``(C) meets a minimum service period or minimum age which 
        is required under the terms of the plan.
    ``(3) In any case in which the employer of an individual who is a 
participant in an employee benefit plan, the plan sponsor of such plan, 
or a fiduciary of such plan requires such individual to convert to the 
status of a temporary employee, leased employee, agency employee, 
staffing firm employee, contractor, or any similar category as a 
condition of continuing in the service of the employer, such individual 
shall not cease to be treated under such plan or this title as a 
participant in such plan by reason of such conversion.''.

SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT.

    Section 502 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 
(29 U.S.C. 1132) is amended--
            (1) in paragraphs (3)(B) and (5)(B) of subsection (a), by 
        striking ``other appropriate equitable relief'' and inserting 
        ``other appropriate relief, including such additional relief as 
        a court of equity might have awarded in a case involving the 
        enforcement or administration of a trust, other equitable 
        relief, compensatory relief, or remedial relief'';
            (2) in subsection (a)(3)(B), by striking ``or'' at the end 
        of clause (i) and inserting a comma, by striking the semicolon 
        at the end of clause (ii) and inserting ``, or'', and by adding 
        at the end the following: ``(iii) to provide restitution and 
        other appropriate relief to employees who have been excluded 
        from participation or have been misclassified or reclassified 
        in violation of section 202 or 402'';
            (3) by striking ``or'' at the end of subsection (a)(8), by 
        striking the period at the end of subsection (a)(9) and 
        inserting ``; or'', and by adding at the end the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(10) by a participant or beneficiary to obtain a judicial 
        declaration concerning whether a waiver of rights arising under 
        this title or a plan, including a waiver of participation in a 
        plan, was knowing and voluntary under the totality of the 
        circumstances.'';
            (4) in subsection (g)(1), by inserting ``, reasonable 
        expert fees,'' before ``and costs'' and by inserting before the 
        period at the end the following: ``, except that the court 
        shall award such fees and costs to a prevailing party in the 
        case of an action brought to enforce section 510, unless the 
        court determines that it would be unjust to do so under the 
        circumstances''; and
            (5) by adding at the end of section 502 the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(n) In an action under this section, if the court finds that any 
participant or beneficiary has been discharged, fined, suspended, 
expelled, disciplined, or discriminated against in violation of section 
510, relief under this section may include enjoining such unlawful 
conduct and ordering such affirmative action as may be appropriate. 
Such action may include, but is not limited to, reinstatement or hiring 
and an award of back pay and lost benefits.''.

SEC. 6. WAIVERS.

    Section 502 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 
(29 U.S.C. 1132) (as amended by section 5) is amended further by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(o)(1) The rights under this title (including the right to 
maintain a civil action) may not be waived, deferred, or lost pursuant 
to any agreement not authorized under this title with specific 
reference to this paragraph.
    ``(2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), paragraph (1) shall not apply 
to an agreement providing for arbitration or participation in any other 
non-judicial procedure to resolve a dispute if the agreement is entered 
into knowingly and voluntarily by the parties involved after the 
dispute has arisen or is pursuant to the terms of a collective 
bargaining agreement.
    ``(B)(i) No waiver under subparagraph (A) of participation in an 
employee benefit plan may be considered knowing and voluntary if 
related, in whole or in part, to the misclassification or 
reclassification of an individual in one or more categories ineligible 
for participation in the plan.
    ``(ii) The party asserting the validity of a waiver under 
subparagraph (A) shall have the burden of proving that the waiver was 
knowing and voluntary.
    ``(iii) A waiver under subparagraph (A) shall not impose any 
limitation, including any condition precedent or penalty, adversely 
affecting the right of an individual to challenge the waiver by 
bringing a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction. Any 
provision requiring an individual to tender back consideration received 
and any provision allowing employers, plan sponsors, and fiduciaries 
(including administrators, officers, trustees, and custodians) to 
recover attorney's fees or damages because of the filing of a civil 
action shall be treated as limitations referred to in the preceding 
sentence. Nothing in this clause shall be construed as precluding 
recovery of a reasonable attorney's fee or costs of action that may be 
authorized under subsection (g)(1).
    ``(iv) No individual who brings a civil action shall be required to 
tender back any consideration given in exchange for a waiver under 
subparagraph (A) before bringing such civil action. The retention of 
any consideration received in exchange for any waiver shall not 
constitute ratification of a waiver under subparagraph (A) or foreclose 
a challenge thereto.
    ``(v) No waiver otherwise permitted under subparagraph (A) may 
affect the Secretary's rights and responsibilities to enforce this 
title. No waiver may be used to justify interfering with the protected 
right of any person to participate in an investigation or proceeding 
conducted by the Secretary.''.

SEC. 7. GENERAL PROVISIONS.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the 
amendments made by this Act shall apply with respect to plan years 
beginning on or after January 1, 2004.
    (b) Special Rule For Collectively Bargained Plans.--In the case of 
a plan maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining 
agreements between employee representatives and one or more employers 
ratified on or before the date of the enactment of this Act, subsection 
(a) shall be applied to benefits pursuant to, and individuals covered 
by, any such agreement by substituting for ``January 1, 2004'' the date 
of the commencement of the first plan year beginning on or after the 
earlier of--
            (1) the later of--
                    (A) January 1, 2005; or
                    (B) the date on which the last of such collective 
                bargaining agreements terminates (determined without 
                regard to any extension thereof after the date of the 
                enactment of this Act); or
            (2) January 1, 2006.
    (c) Plan Amendments.--If any amendment made by this Act requires an 
amendment to any plan, such plan amendment shall not be required to be 
made before the first plan year beginning on or after January 1, 2005, 
if--
            (1) during the period after such amendment made by this Act 
        takes effect and before such first plan year, the plan is 
        operated in good faith compliance with the requirements of such 
        amendment made by this Act; and
            (2) such plan amendment applies retroactively to the period 
        after such amendment made by this Act takes effect and before 
        such first plan year.
Example Output:
Employee Benefits Protection Act of 2003 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to prohibit employers from disqualifying employees from benefits under their pension and welfare plans by misclassifying or reclassifying employee status.