jiayi-li23/proxann_data huggingface dataset:
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Health
Date: 2011-05-23 00:00:00

Small Business Health Relief Act of 2011 - Repeals provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), as added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), that: (1) impose fines on large employers (employers with more than 50 full-time employees) who fail to offer their full-time employees the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential health insurance coverage; and (2) require such large employers to file a report with the Secretary of the Treasury on health insurance coverage provided to their full-time employees. Repeals provision of PPACA that: (1) set limits on the annual deductible on health plans offered in the small group market, (2) allow catastrophic plans to be offered in the individual market to individuals under the age of 30, and (3) impose an annual fee on health insurance entities. Deems high deductible health plans to meet essential health benefits coverage requirements if the enrollee has established a health savings account. Amends the Public Health Service Act, as amended by PPACA, to repeal provision that allow a premium rate variance by age in the individual or small group market. Repeals restrictions on payments for medications from health savings accounts, medical savings accounts, and health flexible spending arrangements to prescription drugs or insulin. Repeals provisions limiting annual salary reduction contributions by an employee to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan to $2,500. Allows a health plan to maintain its status as a grandfathered health plan regardless of any modification to the cost-sharing levels, employer contribution rates, or covered benefits. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promulgate regulations to clarify the application of such provision. Makes this provision effective as if included in PPACA. Voids any regulations promulgated related to such provisions before enactment of this Act.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-05-25 00:00:00

Small Business Additional Temporary Extension Act of 2011 - Extends through July 31, 2011, under the same terms and conditions, the authorization for any program, authority, or provision, including any pilot program, that is currently authorized through May 31, 2011, under the Small Business Act or the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. Amends the Small Business Act (the Act) to reauthorize through FY2011 the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs of the Small Business Administration (SBA), as well as the SBA's commercialization pilot program. Requires all SBIR or STTR funds to be awarded pursuant to competitive and merit-based selection procedures.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-05-26 00:00:00

Small Business Additional Temporary Extension Act of 2011 - Extends through July 31, 2011, under the same terms and conditions, the authorization for any program, authority, or provision, including any pilot program, that is currently authorized through May 31, 2011, under the Small Business Act or the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. Amends the Small Business Act (the Act) to reauthorize through FY2011 the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs of the Small Business Administration (SBA), as well as the SBA's commercialization pilot program. Requires all SBIR or STTR funds to be awarded pursuant to competitive and merit-based selection procedures.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-05-26 00:00:00

Small Business Fairness Act of 2011 - Amends the Small Business Act to permit a contract between a federal agency and a small business teaming arrangement entity to be deemed awarded for purposes of the small business procurement and services contracting goals established by the head of that agency if the obligations of such entity are performed by a qualified HUBZone (historically underutilized business zone) small business or a small business owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, or women. Defines "teaming arrangement entity" as a prime contractor under a contractor team arrangement as defined under specified provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, as in effect on October 1, 2009.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Taxation
Date: 2011-09-06 00:00:00

Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend to all domestic corporations, including S corporations, provisions allowing deferral of tax on gain from the sale of employer securities to an S corporation-sponsored employer stock ownership plan (ESOP). Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish the S Corporation Employee Ownership Assistance Office to foster increased employee ownership of S corporations. Amends the Small Business Act to define "ESOP business concern" and allow such a concern to continue to qualify for loans, preferences, and other programs under such Act.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-09-21 00:00:00

Fairness for Small Businesses in Federal Contracting Act of 2011 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a new classification system for industries for purposes of determining whether businesses meet the small business size standards established herein that replaces the North American Industrial Classification System. Requires: (1) the Federal Acquisition Regulation to be amended to integrate the new system, and (2) the Administrator of General Services to integrate the new system into the Integrated Acquisition Environment. Directs the SBA Administrator to: (1) eliminate the nonmanufacturer exception to small business size determinations, (2) require contracting officers to use the size standard established for retail and wholesale industries in federal procurements for products and services that are not manufactured by the offeror, and (3) require such officers to use only SBA size standards for manufacturing industries if the federal government issues a contract for the purchase of a product or good that is manufactured by the offeror.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-10-20 00:00:00

HUBZone Protection Act of 2011 - Amends the Small Business Act to revise the definition of "redesignated area" for HUBZone designation purposes to extend the time period during which a census tract or nonmetropolitan county that loses its HUBZone status due to the 2010 census may be so designated.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Taxation
Date: 2011-11-03 00:00:00

Small Business Jobs Tax Extenders Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend for one year certain tax expenditures for small businesses, including: (1) the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale or exchange of qualified small business stock, (2) the five-year carryback of tax credit amounts of eligible small businesses, (3) increased expensing and accelerated depreciation allowances, (4) the increased tax deduction for business start-up expenses, and (5) the tax deduction allowed for the health insurance costs of self-employed individuals. Exempts from the requirement to purchase health insurance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act an indivdual whose required contribution (determined on an annual basis) for coverage for a month exceeds 5% (currently 8%) of such individual's household income for the taxable year.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-11-08 00:00:00

Increasing Small Business Lending Act of 2011 - Amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to extend small business loan fee reductions and eliminations and small business loan guarantees under such Act to one year after the enactment of this Act. Makes uniform between the Small Business Administration (SBA) section 7(a) loan program and the SBA local development business loan program the office space leasing policy, allowing up to 50% of a facility to be leased on either a new or existing building. Allows the SBA Administrator to pool (combine for sale on the secondary market) SBA-guaranteed loans having various interest rates. (Currently, the SBA may pool only SBA-guaranteed loans having the same interest rate.) Requires interest rates on trust certificates representing shares of pooled loans to be the weighted average interest rate of such loans. Requires the SBA to provide to intermediary lenders at least one alternative interest rate other than the Wall Street prime rate.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Date: 2011-12-07 00:00:00

Startup Expansion and Investment Act - Amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to revise an exception to rules prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that require the annual reports of certain publicly traded securities issuers to contain: (1) an assessment of the issuer's internal control structure and procedures for financial reporting, and (2) an attestation to such assessment by each registered public accounting firm that prepares or issues an audit report for the issuer. Permits an issuer to elect not to provide such an assessment and attestation if the issuer: (1) has a total market capitalization for the relevant reporting period of less than $1 billion, and (2) is not subject to the annual reporting requirement under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. (Current law exempts issuers with an aggregate worldwide market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by its non-affiliates of below $75 million, as of the last business day of the issuer's most recently completed second fiscal quarter.) Requires an issuer electing not to provide such assessment and attestation to disclose that decision in its next annual report.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2011-12-08 00:00:00

Startup Act of 2011 - Requires the head of any federal or independent regulatory agency, before issuing a notice of rulemaking in connection with the issuance of a proposed major rule, to complete a review that, among other things, analyzes the problem that the rule intends to address, and identifies and analyzes the rule's expected impact on state, local, and tribal governments, as well as on the ability of new businesses to form and expand. Requires a rule cost-benefit analysis. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide a permanent full tax exclusion on gain from the sale or exchange of qualified small business stock held for more than five years, (2) repeal the minimum tax preference and the 28% capital gains rate on such stock, and (3) provide a limited tax credit for certain startup small businesses. Directs the Comptroller General to assess the costs and benefits to prospective investors, shareholders, and securities markets of allowing smaller stock issuers to opt out of company regulatory requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to use certain federal agency extramural budget funds to award grants to institutions of higher education for initiatives to improve the commercialization and expedited transfer of university-based research and resultant technology. Establishes the Committee on Research Commercialization Improvement. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) adjust to conditional permanent resident the status of up to 50,000 aliens who have earned a master's or doctorate degree in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics field (STEM); and (2) issue a conditional immigrant visa to up to 75,000 qualified alien entrepreneurs. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to regularly compile: (1) information from each of the states and the District of Columbia on laws that affect the formation and growth of new businesses, and (2) quantitative and qualitative information on U.S. businesses that are not more than one year old. Requires related reports.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: International affairs
Date: 2011-12-17 00:00:00

Microfinance and Microenterprise Enhancement Act of 2011 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) should expand specified microfinance programming. Directs USAID to: (1) modify the Poverty Assessment Tools so that partner organizations can use them for expanded data management purposes, (2) align household-level interventions with interventions that link the poor to expanding economic opportunities, (3) support the development of financial products adapted to the needs of enterprises, (4) support microfinance institutions and providers that are using agriculture-specific tools, (5) promote financial services to meet the needs of poor households for cash flow management and asset accumulation, and (6) support partners that provide informal savings-led and asset building approaches to microfinance. Urges USAID to: (1) consider support for small- and medium-sized enterprises as a means to improve productivity and competitiveness in key subsectors in which large numbers of poor micro-entrepreneurs participate; and (2) support organizations that link social protection programs with microfinance services, savings services, and business development services. Authorizes USAID to utilize 1% of its development assistance account budget for FY2013 through FY2017 for the creation of a financial access and microenterprise innovation challenge fund that shall: (1) support cost-effective and innovative products and technologies that improve the delivery of financial services to the poor, particularly in rural locations; (2) support new microfinance and microenterprise products, services, and delivery systems that show potential to become cost-effective at large scale; and (3) help transition such methods and technologies to widespread adoption.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Taxation
Date: 2012-01-31 00:00:00

Small Business Tax Extenders Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2012: (1) the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale or exchange of certain small business stock; (2) the five-year carryback of the general business tax credits of eligible small businesses; (3) the offset against the alternative minimum tax (AMT) of general business tax credits; (4) the reduction (from seven to five years) in the recognition period for the built-in gains of S corporations; (5) the increased expensing allowance for depreciable business assets, including computer software; (6) the special tax rule for long-term contract accounting; (7) the increased tax deduction for small business start-up expenditures; and (8) the tax deduction for health insurance premiums in computing self-employment taxable income.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Taxation
Date: 2012-02-09 00:00:00

Small Business Start-up Support Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for a permanent increase (from $5,000 to $10,000) in the tax deduction for business start-up expenditures.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-02-28 00:00:00

Authorizes the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to make $4 billion in guarantees of debentures of small business investment companies (SBICs) for programs under title III of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (the Act). Amends the Act to increase from $225 million to $350 million the maximum amount of outstanding leverage to be made available by the SBA to two or more commonly-controlled SBICs.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-03-07 00:00:00

Fairness in Women-Owned Small Business Contracting Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act with respect to the procurement program for women-owned small businesses (providing a federal procurement contracting preference to such businesses) to: (1) remove the requirement that the woman or women owning such business be economically disadvantaged, (2) remove contract award price limits, and (3) allow a contracting officer to award a sole source contract to such a business under the same conditions as such a contract may be awarded to a qualified HUBZone (historically underutilized business zone) small business. Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to: (1) periodically conduct a study to identify any U.S. industry in which women are underrepresented; and (2) every five years, report study results to the congressional small business committees.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-03-12 00:00:00

Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to allow the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to guarantee a surety against any loss resulting from the breach of a bid bond, payment bond, performance bond, or bonds ancillary thereto, by a principal on any work order or contract amount up to $5 million (under current law, up to $2 million). Requires the Administrator to reimburse such a surety unless the total contract exceeds such increased amount.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Taxation
Date: 2012-04-16 00:00:00

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an eligible small business to elect to expense the cost of its depreciable assets. Defines "eligible small business" as any trade or business that does not have a net profit in any taxable year of more than $1 million.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-04-25 00:00:00

Amends the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 to extend through September 27, 2013 (under current law, through September 27, 2012) the authority for Small Business Administration (SBA) refinancing of small business debt not involving business expansion under the SBA's local development business loan program.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-05-14 00:00:00

Vocational and Technical Entrepreneurship Development Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a program to make grants to, or enter into cooperative agreements with, state small business development centers to provide, on a statewide basis, technical assistance to secondary schools, post-secondary vocational or technical schools, or nonprofit organizations that serve youth and young adults for the development and implementation of curricula designed to promote vocational and technical entrepreneurship. Prohibits the Administrator from requiring matching funds as a grant condition. Requires: (1) grant recipients to report to the Administrator on their use of funds, and (2) the Administrator to submit to Congress a program evaluation. Directs the association of small business development centers to act as an information clearinghouse regarding vocational and technical entrepreneurship education programs.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-05-16 00:00:00

Small Business Common Application Act of 2012 - Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish and maintain a small business common application and web portal (application and portal) to allow small businesses to submit a single common application for federal assistance provided by any executive agency, including loans and loan guarantees, grants, technical assistance, and counseling services. Establishes in the Economic Development Administration an Executive Committee on a Small Business Common Application, which shall: (1) make recommendations regarding the establishment of the application and portal, (2) monitor their implementation, and (3) make periodic recommendations to the Administrator for their improvement.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-05-17 00:00:00

Women's Small Business Ownership Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Office of Women's Business Ownership within the Small Business Administration (SBA) to address issues concerning the management, operations, manufacturing, technology, finance, retail and product sales, international trade, government contracting, and other disciplines required for starting, operating, and increasing the business of a small business. Authorizes the SBA Administrator to provide annual training for women's business ownership representatives to enable them to carry out such responsibilities. Authorizes the Administrator to provide financial assistance to qualifying entities to conduct projects designed to provide training and counseling meeting the needs of women business owners, especially socially and economically disadvantaged women business owners. Provides assistance amounts of at least $100,000 and up to $150,000 per year. Directs the Administrator to consult with each association of women's business centers to develop: (1) a training program for the staff of such centers, and (2) recommendations to improve the policies and procedures for governing the general operations and administration of the women's business center program. Outlines application and other requirements for entities to receive assistance to conduct such projects. Directs the Administrator to solicit applications and award grants for the first fiscal year beginning after the enactment of this Act, and every third fiscal year thereafter. Provides for the review and approval of grant applications, as well as conditions for continued funding. Allows for multiple awards to the same entities. Directs the Comptroller General (CG) to study and report to Congress on: (1) the unique economic issues facing women's business centers located in predominately rural, urban, or insular areas; and (2) SBA oversight of women's business centers.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-05-17 00:00:00

Strengthening Resources for America's Entrepreneurs Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to develop and submit to Congress a plan for using SBA entrepreneurial development programs (EDPs) to create jobs during FY2013-FY2014. Requires the Administrator to: (1) promulgate a rule to develop and implement a consistent data collection process for the EDPs; (2) report annually to Congress on opportunities to foster coordination of, limit duplication among, and improve program delivery for federal EDPs; (3) establish a database of providers of entrepreneurial development services; (4) designate at least one employee in each SBA district office as a community specialist to work with local providers of such services to increase their coordination with federal EDPs; and (5) develop benchmarks for measuring the performance of such specialists.
Topic: Domestic Commerce — Small Businesses
Subject: Commerce
Date: 2012-05-17 00:00:00

Amends the Small Business Export Development Act to direct the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to submit to the congressional small business committees periodic reports, beginning two years after the enactment of this Act, that rank each state and U.S. territory, the District of Columbia, and the 50 largest U.S. metropolitan areas on how well their regulations and policies create optimal environments for the creation and development of small businesses. Designates each such report as a National Small Business Climate Index (Index). Outlines factors to be used to achieve such rankings. Requires the Chief Counsel, within one year after the enactment of this Act, to report to such committees on the progress in preparing the first Index.