115 S450 IS: Pacific Defenders of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act
U.S. Senate
2017-02-27
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

		II
		115th CONGRESS1st Session
		S. 450
		IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

			February 27, 2017
			Mr. Manchin introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

		A BILL
		To award a Congressional Gold Medal to members of the Armed Forces who fought in defense of Guam,
			 Wake Island, and the Philippine Archipelago between December 7, 1941 and
			 May 10, 1942, and who died or were imprisoned by the Japanese military in
			 the Philippines, Japan, Korea, Manchuria, Wake Island, and Guam from April
			 9, 1942 until September 2, 1945, in recognition of their personal
			 sacrifice and service to the United States.

		1.Short title
 This Act may be cited as the Pacific Defenders of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act.
 2.FindingsCongress finds that— (1)Guam was captured by Imperial Japanese forces on December 10, 1941, 3 days after the attack on Pearl Harbor and remained in the hands of the Japanese until June 1944;
 (2)the prisoners who remained on Guam suffered atrocities at the hands of the Japanese, with some prisoners being transported on hell ships to Japanese prisoner of war camps;
 (3)on December 22, 1941, the Japanese took approximately 1,600 prisoners on Wake Island; (4)approximately 450 members of the Armed Forces and 1,150 civilians were captured on Wake Island and transported on hell ships to prisoner of war camps in China and Japan;
 (5)Major General Edward King led the combined Philippine-United States force of 75,000 troops in the defense of the Bataan peninsula, until April 9, 1942, at which point, due to diminishing resources and disease, Major General King surrendered soldiers from the United States and the Commonwealth of the Philippines into enemy hands;
 (6)over the next week, the soldiers from the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth were taken prisoner and forced to march 65 miles without food, water, or medical care in what came to be known as the Bataan Death March, where approximately 600 members of the Armed Forces and between 5,000 and 10,000 Filipino soldiers died from starvation disease, exposure, exhaustion, and abuse by their captors;
 (7)on May 6, 1942, the resistance reached its limitations after a weeklong siege and Lieutenant General Wainwright, as authorized by President Roosevelt, surrendered the remaining 11,000 troops on Corregidor Island;
 (8)on May 10, 1942, the only remaining resistance force in the archipelago, under the command of Major General William F. Sharp, surrendered after fighting the Japanese from April 29, 1942, to May 9, 1942, on the island of Mindanao, at which point Lieutenant General Jonathan Wainwright, as Supreme Allied Commander, surrendered all Allied Forces in the Philippine archipelago;
 (9)within the first 40 days 1,600 more United States prisoners died at Camp O’Donnell, a pre-war training camp turned prisoner of war camp, which had substandard conditions, leading to increased disease and malnutrition among the prisoners;
 (10)in May 1942, the Japanese began transferring prisoners of war by sea to Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria, Sumatra, Burma, and Siam;
 (11)during the transfer, prisoners were crammed into cargo holds with little air, food or water for journeys that would last for weeks on what were to be known as the hell ships;
 (12)many died due to asphyxia, starvation, or dysentery and some prisoners became delirious and unresponsive in an environment of heat, humidity and lack of oxygen, food, and water;
 (13)estimates of more than 126,000 Allied prisoners of war were transported in 156 voyages on 134 Japanese merchant ships, of whom more than 21,000 people of the United States were killed or injured;
 (14)on June 6, 1942, 6,000 United States prisoners of war were transferred to Cabanatuan, north of Camp O’Donnell, where they were assigned to work details and hard labor and where 3,000 members of the Armed Forces died from disease, starvation, beatings, and executions;
 (15)the campus of the University of Santo Tomás in Manila was converted to the Santo Tomás Internment Camp by the Japanese during their occupation of the Philippines, from January 1942 until February 1945;
 (16)Santo Tomás became the internment camp for United States Army and Navy nurses also known as the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor, who continued to serve as a nursing unit while imprisoned and until their liberation; (17)the prisoners who remained in the camps suffered from continued mistreatment, malnutrition, lack of medical care, and horrific conditions;
 (18)Operation Blacklist began in early 1945 to locate, recover, and repatriate all prisoners of war; (19)over the subsequent decades, these prisoners formed support groups, were honored in local and State memorials, and told their story to the people of the United States; and
 (20)the people of the United States are forever indebted to these men and women for— (A)the courage they demonstrated during the first 4 months of World War II in fighting against enemy soldiers; and
 (B)the perseverance they demonstrated during subsequent years of capture and imprisonment under brutal conditions, while maintaining their dignity, honor, patriotism, and loyalty.
				3.Congressional gold medal
 (a)Presentation authorizedThe Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of members of the Armed Forces who fought in defense of Guam, Wake Island, and the Philippine archipelago between December 7, 1941, and May 10, 1942, and who died or were imprisoned by the Japanese military in the Philippines, Japan, Korea, Manchuria, Wake Island, and Guam from April 9, 1942, until September 2, 1945, in recognition of their personal sacrifice and service to the United States.
 (b)Design and strikingFor purposes of the presentation under subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the Secretary) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.
			(c)Transfer and display of medals
 (1)In generalFollowing the presentation of the gold medal under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, where it shall be displayed as appropriate and made available for research.
 (2)Sense of CongressIt is the sense of the Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) available for display at other locations, particularly such locations as are associated with the members of the Armed Forces described under subsection (a).
 4.Duplicate medalsThe Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.
 5.National medalsThe medals struck pursuant to this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.


		II
		110th CONGRESS
		1st Session
		S. 1459
		IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

			May 23, 2007
			Mr. Menendez (for
			 himself and Mr. Lautenberg) introduced
			 the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
			 Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
			 and Pensions

		A BILL
		To strengthen the Nation’s research efforts to identify
		  the causes and cure of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, expand psoriasis and
		  psoriatic arthritis data collection, study access to and quality of care for
		  people with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and for other
		  purposes.

		1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the
			 Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis
			 Research, Cure, and Care Act of 2007.
		2.Table of
			 contentsThe table of contents
			 for this Act is as follows:

				Sec. 1. Short title.
				Sec. 2. Table of contents.
				Sec. 3. Findings.
				Sec. 4. Expansion of biomedical research.
				Sec. 5. National patient registry.
				Sec. 6. National summit.
				Sec. 7. Study and report by the Institute of
				Medicine.

		3.FindingsThe Congress finds as follows:
			(1)Psoriasis and
			 psoriatic arthritis are autoimmune-mediated, chronic, inflammatory, painful,
			 disfiguring, and life-altering diseases that require life-long sophisticated
			 medical intervention and care and have no cure.
			(2)Psoriasis and
			 psoriatic arthritis affect as many as 7.5 million men, women, and children of
			 all ages and have an adverse impact on the quality of life for virtually all
			 affected.
			(3)Psoriasis often is
			 overlooked or dismissed because it does not cause death. Psoriasis is commonly
			 and incorrectly considered by insurers, employers, policymakers, and the public
			 as a mere annoyance, a superficial problem, mistakenly thought to be contagious
			 and due to poor hygiene. Treatment for psoriasis often is categorized, wrongly,
			 as life-style and not medically necessary.
			(4)Psoriasis goes
			 hand-in-hand with a myriad of co-morbidities such as Crohn’s disease, diabetes,
			 metabolic syndrome, obesity, hypertension, heart attack, cardiovascular
			 disease, liver disease, and psoriatic arthritis, which occurs in 10 to 30
			 percent of people with psoriasis.
			(5)The National
			 Institute of Mental Health funded a study that found that psoriasis may cause
			 as much physical and mental disability as other major diseases, including
			 cancer, arthritis, hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, and
			 depression.
			(6)Psoriasis is
			 associated with elevated rates of depression and suicidal ideation.
			(7)Each year the
			 people of the United States lose approximately 56 million hours of work and
			 spend $2 billion to $3 billion to treat psoriasis.
			(8)Early diagnosis
			 and treatment of psoriatic arthritis may help prevent irreversible joint
			 damage.
			(9)Treating psoriasis
			 and psoriatic arthritis presents a challenge for patients and their health care
			 providers because no one treatment works for everyone, some treatments lose
			 effectiveness over time, many treatments are used in combination with other
			 treatments, and all treatments may cause a unique set of side effects.
			(10)Although new and
			 more effective treatments finally are becoming available, too many people do
			 not yet have access to the types of therapies that may make a significant
			 difference in the quality of their lives.
			(11)Psoriasis and
			 psoriatic arthritis constitute a significant national health issue that
			 deserves a comprehensive and coordinated response by State and Federal
			 governments with involvement of the health care provider, patient, and public
			 health communities.
			4.Expansion of
			 biomedical research
			(a)In
			 generalThe Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this Act
			 referred to as the Secretary), acting through the Director of
			 the National Institutes of Health, shall expand and intensify research and
			 related activities of the Institutes with respect to psoriasis and psoriatic
			 arthritis.
			(b)Research by
			 NIAMS
				(1)In
			 generalThe Director of the National Institute of Arthritis and
			 Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases shall conduct or support research to expand
			 understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, psoriasis and psoriatic
			 arthritis. Such research shall include the following:
					(A)Basic research to
			 discover the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of the disease.
					(B)Expansion of
			 molecular genetics and immunology studies, including additional animal
			 models.
					(C)Global association
			 mapping with single nucleotide polymorphisms.
					(D)Identification of
			 environmental triggers and autoantigens in psoriasis.
					(E)Elucidation of
			 specific immune receptor cells and their products involved.
					(F)Pharmcogenetic
			 studies to understand the molecular basis for varying patient response to
			 treatment.
					(G)Identification of
			 genetic markers of psoriatic arthritis susceptibility.
					(H)Research to
			 increase understanding of joint inflammation and destruction in psoriatic
			 arthritis.
					(I)Clinical research
			 for the development and evaluation of new treatments, including new biological
			 agents.
					(J)Research to
			 develop improved diagnostic tests.
					(K)Research to
			 increase understanding of co-morbidities and psoriasis, including shared
			 molecular pathways.
					(2)Coordination
			 with other institutesIn carrying out paragraph (1), the Director
			 of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
			 shall coordinate the activities of the Institute with the activities of other
			 national research institutes and other agencies and offices of the National
			 Institutes of Health relating to psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis.
				5.National patient
			 registry
			(a)In
			 generalThe Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers
			 for Disease Control and Prevention and in collaboration with an eligible
			 national organization, shall establish a national psoriasis and psoriatic
			 arthritis patient registry.
			(b)Cooperative
			 agreementsIn carrying out
			 subsection (a), the Secretary shall enter into cooperative agreements with an
			 eligible national organization and appropriate academic health institutions to
			 develop, implement, and manage a system for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis
			 patient data collection and analysis, including the creation and use of a
			 common data entry and management system.
			(c)Longitudinal
			 dataIn carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure
			 the collection and analysis of longitudinal data related to individuals of all
			 ages with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, including infants, young children,
			 adolescents, and adults of all ages including older Americans.
			(d)Eligible
			 national organizationIn this
			 section, the term eligible national organization means a national
			 organization that—
				(1)has expertise in
			 the epidemiology of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis; and
				(2)maintains an
			 established patient registry or biobank.
				(e)Authorization of
			 appropriationsTo carry out this section, there are authorized to
			 be appropriated $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and $500,000 for each of fiscal
			 years 2009 through 2012.
			6.National
			 summit
			(a)In
			 generalNot later than one
			 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall convene a
			 summit on the current activities of the Federal Government to conduct or
			 support research, treatment, education, and quality-of-life activities with
			 respect to psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, including psoriasis and psoriatic
			 arthritis related co-morbidities. The summit shall include researchers, public
			 health professionals, representatives of voluntary health agencies and patient
			 advocacy organizations, representatives of academic institutions, and Federal
			 and State policymakers.
			(b)FocusThe
			 summit convened under this section shall focus on—
				(1)a
			 broad range of research activities relating to biomedical, epidemiological,
			 psychosocial, and rehabilitative issues;
				(2)clinical research
			 for the development and evaluation of new treatments, including new biological
			 agents;
				(3)translational
			 research;
				(4)information and
			 education programs for health care professionals and the public;
				(5)priorities among
			 the programs and activities of the various Federal agencies involved in
			 psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis related
			 co-morbidities; and
				(6)challenges and
			 opportunities for scientists, clinicians, patients, and voluntary
			 organizations.
				(c)Report to
			 CongressNot later than 180 days after the first day of the
			 summit convened under this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress and
			 make publicly available a report that includes a description of—
				(1)the proceedings at
			 the summit; and
				(2)the research, treatment, education, and
			 quality-of-life activities conducted or supported by the Federal Government
			 with respect to psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, including psoriasis and
			 psoriatic arthritis related co-morbidities.
				(d)Authorization of
			 appropriationsTo carry out this section, there are authorized
			 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 through
			 2010.
			7.Study and report
			 by the Institute of Medicine
			(a)In
			 generalThe Secretary shall enter into an agreement with the
			 Institute of Medicine to conduct a study on the following:
				(1)The extent to
			 which public and private insurers cover prescription medications and other
			 treatments for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
				(2)The payment
			 structures, such as deductibles and co-payments, and the amounts and duration
			 of coverage under health plans and their adequacy to cover the costs of
			 providing ongoing care to patients with psoriasis and psoriatic
			 arthritis.
				(3)Health plan and
			 insurer coverage policies and practices and their impact on the access of such
			 patients to the best regimen and most appropriate care for their particular
			 disease state.
				(b)ReportThe
			 agreement entered into under subsection (a) shall provide for the Institute of
			 Medicine to submit to the Secretary and Congress, not later than 18 months
			 after the date of the enactment of this Act, a report containing a description
			 of the results of the study conducted under this section and the conclusions
			 and recommendations of the Institutes of Medicine regarding each of the issues
			 described in paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (a).


115 HRES 544 IH: Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to require a reading of the names of members of the Armed Forces who died in the previous month as a result of combat.
U.S. House of Representatives
2017-09-28
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV
115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 544
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

September 28, 2017
Mr. Cartwright (for himself, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Farenthold, Mrs. Walorski, Mr. Babin, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Franks of Arizona, Ms. Bordallo, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Ms. Norton, Mr. Gibbs, Mr. Olson, and Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Rules

RESOLUTION
Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to require a reading of the names of members of the Armed Forces who died in the previous month as a result of combat.

That— (a)Clause 1 of rule XIV of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended by adding after the third item the following new item:

Fourth.On the first legislative day of each month, a reading of the names of members of the Armed Forces who died in the previous month as a result of combat.. (b)Clause 1 of rule XIV is amended by redesignating the fourth through the ninth items as the fifth through the tenth items.
(c)Rule XIV of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended by adding at the end the following new clause:  7.The Speaker shall not read the name of any member of the Armed Forces under clause 1 if any family member informs the Speaker that the family member does not wish to have the name of that individual read. .


113 HR 4406 IH: Taxpayer Bailout Protection Act
U.S. House of Representatives
2014-04-04
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

		I
		113th CONGRESS
		2d Session
		H. R. 4406
		IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

			April 4, 2014
			Mr. Lance introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

		A BILL
		To amend title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to impose restrictions on the
			 risk corridor program.

		1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the Taxpayer Bailout Protection Act.
		2.Restrictions on PPACA risk corridor programSection 1342(b) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18062(b)) is amended—
			(1)in paragraph (1), by striking The Secretary and inserting Subject to paragraph (3), the Secretary; and
			(2)by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

					(3)Safeguard to protect taxpayers
						(A)In generalThe Secretary shall ensure that the amount of payments to plans under paragraph (1) for a plan year
			 beginning during calendar year 2014, 2015, or 2016 does not exceed the
			 amount of payments to the Secretary under paragraph (2) for such plan
			 year.
						(B)Adjustment to protect taxpayersThe Secretary shall proportionately decrease the amount of payments to plans under paragraph (1) in
			 order to ensure that the requirement of subparagraph (A) is satisfied each
			 year..


		I
		112th CONGRESS
		1st Session
		H. R. 3362
		IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

			November 3, 2011
			Mrs. Schmidt (for
			 herself, Mr. Coble, and
			 Mr. Bucshon) introduced the following
			 bill; which was referred to the Committee
			 on Transportation and Infrastructure

		A BILL
		To limit the manner in which Amtrak is authorized to
		  provide food and beverage service.

		1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the
			 Amtrak Food and Beverage Service
			 Savings Act.
		2.Amtrak food and
			 beverage service
			(a)AuthoritySection 24305(c)(4) of title 49, United
			 States Code, is amended by striking only if revenues from the services
			 each year at least equal the cost of providing the services and
			 inserting only as provided in subsection (g).
			(b)ProceduresSection 24305 of title 49, United States
			 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

					(g)Food and
				beverage service
						(1)In
				generalExcept as provided in
				paragraph (6), food and beverage service may be provided on Amtrak trains only
				by a bidder selected by the Federal Railroad Administration under paragraph
				(5). The Federal Railroad Administration may consult with and obtain assistance
				from the General Services Administration in carrying out this
				subsection.
						(2)Requests for
				proposalsNot later than 60
				days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Federal Railroad
				Administration shall issue separate requests for proposals for provision of
				food and beverage service on Amtrak trains on—
							(A)the Northeast
				Corridor;
							(B)other long-haul routes; and
							(C)State-run
				routes.
							(3)Deadlines
							(A)Submittal of
				bidsBids for the provision of food and beverage service on
				Amtrak trains pursuant to the requests for proposals issued under paragraph (2)
				shall be submitted to the Federal Railroad Administration not later than 60
				days after the issuance of the relevant request for proposals.
							(B)Selection of
				winning bidsThe Federal
				Railroad Administration shall select winning bidders pursuant to paragraph (5)
				not later than 90 days after the issuance of the relevant request for
				proposals.
							(4)Amtrak
				participationAmtrak may participate in the bidding pursuant to a
				request for proposals issued under paragraph (2).
						(5)Selection of
				providersThe Federal
				Railroad Administration shall select for the provision of food and beverage
				service on Amtrak trains the qualified bidder responding to the request for
				proposals issued under paragraph (2) whose bid would result in the lowest cost,
				or the greatest source of revenue, to Amtrak.
						(6)ExemptionIf no qualified bidder responds to the
				request for proposals issued under paragraph (2), Amtrak, after transmitting to
				the Federal Railroad Administration and the Congress an explanation of the
				reasons for the need of an exemption, may request from the Federal Railroad
				Administration, and the Federal Railroad Administration may grant, an exemption
				from the limitations under this subsection.
						(7)Subsidy for net
				lossThe Federal Railroad
				Administration shall provide directly to the entity providing food and beverage
				service on Amtrak trains any portion of appropriations for Amtrak necessary to
				cover a net loss resulting from the provision of such service, but only to the
				extent that such net loss was anticipated in the bid
				selected.
						.


117 S2741 IS: Reducing Obesity in Youth Act of 2021
U.S. Senate
2021-09-14
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

II117th CONGRESS1st SessionS. 2741IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESSeptember 14, 2021Mr. Booker (for himself and Ms. Klobuchar) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and PensionsA BILLTo amend the Public Health Service Act to promote healthy eating and physical activity among children.1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the Reducing Obesity in Youth Act of 2021.2.Findings and purposes(a)FindingsCongress makes the following findings: (1)The COVID–19 pandemic has had serious impacts on the health and well-being of children and families.(2)Unemployment and poverty, as well as lengthy business, school, and child care closures, have all contributed to elevated levels of food insecurity, with an estimated 14,000,000 children in the United States not getting enough to eat. (3)Millions of children receive free or reduced-price meals through early childhood education programs, including school and early care and education programs such as childcare, Head Start, pre-kindergarten, and family childcare, making early childhood education an important setting for addressing food insecurity.(4)More than 30,000,000 children receive free or reduced-price meals on a daily basis, and access to both breakfast and lunch can provide some children with more than half of their daily caloric intake.(5)Due to financial instability during the COVID–19 pandemic, there is an increased likelihood of unhealthy weight gain among children as families shift to less costly, calorically dense, shelf-stable foods, rather than fresh foods. (6)Research has shown that early childhood is an important time for developing dietary and physical activity behaviors that support health and well-being and that may help prevent obesity.(7)Children who are exposed to healthy foods early are more likely develop eating habits that promote healthy growth that can continue throughout childhood, and healthy eating can improve a child’s learning ability, potentially lead to higher academic performance, improve mental, social, and physical well-being, and contribute to increased self-esteem.(8)Research underscores the importance of physical activity in early childhood. It is not only essential for healthy weight maintenance, but also for practicing and learning fundamental gross motor skills and improving academic achievement. Furthermore, when children have the opportunity for adequate physical activity, they benefit physically, psychologically and socially.(9)Nearly 20 percent (1 in 5) of 2-year-olds spend more than 2 hours of a typical day watching television or videos, and the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics found that each incremental hour of watching television at age 2 is associated with corresponding declines in school engagement, math achievement, and weekend physical activity, and with increases in bullying by classmates, consumption of soft drinks and snacks, and body mass index at age 10.(10)A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2014 found that a third of children with overweight in kindergarten had obesity by the eighth grade. Almost every child with severe obesity remained that way, suggesting that efforts must start much earlier and focus more on the children at greatest risk.(11)A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2017 estimates that over 50 percent of 2-year-olds today will be obese by 35 years of age.(12)A study examining the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey published in 2018 found an increase in prevalence of childhood obesity in 2015 and 2016. Childhood obesity for children between 2 and 5 years of age increased from 9 percent to 14 percent, the highest increase since 1999.(13)In 2016, about 82 percent of United States preschool-aged children were in childcare, and most of their day was spent in sedentary activities.(14)Early care and education centers serve approximately 7,500,000 children birth through age 5 years but not yet in kindergarten, making the early childhood care and education setting an important one for promoting healthful habits.(15)More than 122,000 children in 12 States have benefitted from efforts to support healthier early care and education programs. This includes the provision of training and coaching for childcare providers and technical assistance to State agencies to integrate nutrition and physical activity best practices into existing State and local systems.(b)PurposesThe purposes of this Act are to—(1)establish a program that will enhance the training and knowledge of early care and education providers and influence practices, policies, and environments in early care and education settings to support healthy eating and physical activity for children ages birth through 5, including by addressing the growing threat of food insecurity;(2)provide support to States on ways to link early care and education programs to nutrition supports;(3)monitor progress of healthy eating and physical activity promotion in early care and education settings; and(4)identify emerging, and expand existing, approaches to engaging families and parents of children ages birth to 5 in healthy eating and physical activity.3.Healthy Kids ProgramTitle III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 241 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:WHealthy Kids Program399OO.DefinitionsIn this part:(1)DirectorThe term Director means the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.(2)Early care and educationThe term early care and education means programs and activities that serve children ages birth through 5 years either through in-home or out-of-home settings, including childcare programs, Head Start programs, family childcare, and pre-kindergarten programs.399OO–1.Grants(a)In generalThe Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in coordination with the Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families, shall award 5-year competitive grants to one or more eligible entities to improve healthy eating and physical activity and to address food insecurity among children ages birth through 5 years in early care and education settings.(b)EligibilityTo be eligible to receive a grant under subsection (a), an entity shall—(1)be—(A)a nonprofit organization with expertise in early childhood health and childhood obesity prevention;(B)an institution of higher education or research center that employs faculty with relevant expertise and has expertise in training early care and education providers; or(C)a consortium of entities described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) that submit a single application to carry out activities under the grant jointly; and(2)submit to the Director an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require.(c)Use of funds(1)In GeneralAn entity shall use amounts received under a grant under this section to work directly with implementing partners, which may include States, territories, Indian Tribes, municipalities, and nonprofit organizations, to—(A)create sustainable programs to train early care and education providers through direct coaching and peer-learning, access to quality technical assistance, and professional development opportunities that are focused on healthy eating, physical activity, addressing food insecurity, and other topics that support children's healthy development, as determined by the Director;(B)build State capacity through training, technical assistance, and resources to integrate the promotion of healthy eating and physical activity into existing early care and education programs, systems, and initiatives, including linking early care and education programs to new and existing resources for nutrition supports, with a focus on promoting equity; (C)test innovative or evidence-informed approaches to promoting healthy habits and healthy child development in early care and education settings, which may include linking early care and education and health care providers, enhancing early care and education staff wellness, enhancing access to quality foods in the early care and education settings, and engaging families of children ages birth to 5 years served in the early care and education programs supported by a grant under this section.(2)Implementing partnersIn selecting States, territories, Indian tribes, municipalities, or nonprofit organizations to be implementing partners under a grant under this section, a grantee shall ensure that such partners—(A)serve populations that are racially, ethnically, socioeconomically, and geographically diverse; and(B)represent a mix of rural and urban settings.(3)National independent evaluatorFrom the amounts appropriated to carry out this section, and prior to awarding any grants under paragraph (1), the Director shall enter into a contract with an external entity to create a single, uniform process to—(A)ensure that entities that receive grants under paragraph (1) comply with the requirements of this section; and(B)evaluate the outcomes of the grant activities carried out by each participating entity.(d)Tracking State progressThe Director may use amounts appropriated under subsection (f)(2) to enter into contracts with, or award grants to, institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, or other entities with relevant monitoring and surveillance expertise, for purposes of—(1)tracking State progress in obesity prevention policies and practices of early care and education programs in States where grantees are present; and (2)measuring changes in food security within exposed groups.(e)ReportNot later than 1 year after the completion of the programs and activities funded under grants awarded under this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress, and all appropriate agencies, a report concerning an evaluation of the results of such programs, activities, and surveillance, including best practices, and lessons derived from the experiences of grantees with respect to reducing and preventing food insecurity and obesity and overweight among children ages birth through 5 years in the early care and education settings.(f)Authorization of appropriationsThere is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section—(1)$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026; and(2)$1,700,000 for fiscal year 2022, to be used to track State progress in obesity prevention and food security policies and practices of early care and education programs in a sentinel set of States as provided for in subsection (d)..


117 HRES 162 IH: Urging that the International Olympic Committee rebid the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, and expressing the sense of Congress that the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee should not participate if the Games are held in the People’s Republic of China and that the United States Government should lead an international boycott if the Games are held in the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes.
U.S. House of Representatives
2021-02-24
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV117th CONGRESS1st SessionH. RES. 162IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESFebruary 24, 2021Mr. Waltz (for himself, Mr. Reschenthaler, and Mr. Katko) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concernedRESOLUTIONUrging that the International Olympic Committee rebid the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, and expressing the sense of Congress that the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee should not participate if the Games are held in the People’s Republic of China and that the United States Government should lead an international boycott if the Games are held in the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes.Whereas, in 2015, the International Olympic Committee announced Beijing, the capital city of the People’s Republic of China, as the host city of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games;Whereas the Olympic charter states the goal of Olympism is to promote a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity;Whereas, according to the September 2020 House of Representatives China Task Force Report, the Government of China is the leading human rights abuser in the world, depriving 1,400,000,000 human beings of their fundamental rights;Whereas, since 2017, the Government of China has detained and persecuted up to 1,800,000 Turkic Muslims, including ethnic Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and Kyrgyz, in political re-education centers, and many detainees who have not graduated from the facilities have been convicted of formal crimes and sentenced to prison terms;Whereas detained and imprisoned Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) are held arbitrarily and without due process, coerced to disavow religious beliefs and cultural practices, forced to work in factories, deprived of food and other essential needs, and subjected to physical abuse, including torture and alleged organ harvesting;Whereas the Government of China is implementing a policy of employing large numbers of Uyghurs, including former detainees, in labor-intensive factories in Xinjiang and elsewhere in China under forced labor conditions; Whereas the Government of China has implemented policies against minority groups in the XUAR to lower birth rates, including forced abortions, sterilizations, and contraception;Whereas according to the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, an estimated 8,500 mosques have been demolished in the XUAR, and nearly 30 percent of Islamic shrines, cemeteries, and other sites of religious importance in the region have been damaged or destroyed, mostly since 2017;Whereas the annual report of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China for 2020 indicates—(1)the Government of China and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) have taken unprecedented steps in the last year to extend their repressive policies through censorship, intimidation, and the detention of individuals and groups for exercising their fundamental human rights, especially in the XUAR and Hong Kong;(2)in XUAR, it is now estimated that up to 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Hui, and others have been arbitrarily detained in a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps where they are subjected to forced labor, torture, and political indoctrination; (3)forced labor in the XUAR is widespread and systematic and exists within the mass internment camps and elsewhere throughout the region, as part of a targeted campaign of repression against Turkic and Muslim minorities; (4)detention of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Hui, and others in mass internment camps in the XUAR since around April 2017, and authorities have also increasingly sentenced ethnic minority individuals to lengthy prison terms for political reasons since 2017;(5)in Hong Kong, the one country, two systems framework has been dismantled, severely undermining the rule of law and respect for human rights that the territory has long enjoyed, and authorities arrested prodemocracy leaders, prevented journalists from reporting, applied political pressure on the judiciary, and allowed the Hong Kong Police Force to grow increasingly abusive toward nonviolent protesters; and (6)the Government of China and CCP have further intensified campaigns that aim to bring religion in China under closer official control, and authorities have expanded campaigns to target, control, and surveil not only religions deemed foreign like Christianity, Islam, and Tibetan Buddhism, but also traditional Chinese religions;Whereas Article 2 of the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which both the United States and China have ratified, defines genocide as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: (a) killing members of the group; (b) causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (c) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; [or] (e) forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.;Whereas, on January 19, 2021, the Department of State determined that the Government of China, under the direction and control of the CCP, has committed genocide against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang, and on the same day, Secretary of State Antony Blinken agreed, stating, forcing men, women and children into concentration camps, trying to in effect re-educate them to be adherents to the Chinese Communist Party—all of that speaks to an effort to commit genocide;Whereas, in June 2020, the legislature of China passed a national security law for Hong Kong restricting basic political rights and authorizing severe punishments for anyone inside or outside Hong Kong found guilty of broad vaguely defined crimes, effectively ending the longstanding one country, two systems policy;Whereas, in September 2020, the House Foreign Affairs Committee Minority Staff Report on the origins of the COVID–19 global pandemic found that—(1)authorities in China harassed, detained, and disappeared individuals who told the truth about the CCP’s handling of the COVID–19 pandemic; (2)during the early outbreak of the COVID–19 pandemic, the Government of China failed to meet an international legal requirement to inform the World Health Organization of the COVID–19 outbreak in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China;(3)during the early stages of the COVID–19 pandemic, the Government of China knew of the deadly human-to-human transmission capabilities of the virus and took steps to hide it from the public and global community; and(4)in February 2020, the Government of China nationalized their medical supply chain to stockpile personal protective equipment and stop foreign exports to other countries battling the COVID–19 pandemic;Whereas the Department of State’s 2020 Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP) relating to the People’s Republic of China—(1)indicates that the Trafficking in Victims Protection Act defines severe forms of trafficking in persons as: sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age; or the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery;(2)states that Tier 3 is the most severe category for trafficking activity and defines Tier 3 as countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so; and(3)indicates that the Government of China has been designated in Tier 3 by the Department of State in the TIP since 2017;Whereas, on February 3, 2021, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported several shocking and appalling firsthand accounts of an organized system of mass rape, sexual abuse, and torture of the Uyghurs in the XUAR;Whereas, on February 11, 2021, the PRC banned the BBC for its reporting on human rights abuses in XUAR; Whereas, in October 2020, United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab stated, regarding a potential boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics due to human rights violations against the Uyghurs, that my instinct is to separate sport from diplomacy and politics, but there comes a point where that may not be possible;Whereas, in September 2020, an international coalition of human rights organizations wrote to the International Olympic Committee requesting the committee reverse its mistake in awarding Beijing the honor of hosting the Winter Olympic Games in 2022;Whereas, in November 2020, the Australian Parliament debated a motion calling on the Australian Government to work with the Australian Olympic Committee to ensure Australia boycotts the 2022 Winter Olympics games in Beijing;Whereas, in January 2020, the editorial board of The Washington Post opposed the Government of China hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics and stated, the world must ask whether China, slowly strangling an entire people, has the moral standing to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. We think not.;Whereas, in 1980, in H. Con. Res. 249, the House of Representatives voted 386 to 12, and the Senate voted 88 to 4, to urge the United States Olympic Committee to propose the transfer or cancellation of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow; to urge the International Olympic Committee to adopt such a proposal; and, if the International Olympic Committee rejected the proposal, to urge the United States Olympic Committee and those of other countries not to participate in the Games and to conduct alternative games of their own, due to concerns over the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan;Whereas since the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, the human rights record and global authoritarian influence of China have severely worsened and do not meet the values of Olympism; andWhereas the Olympic Games is a celebration of international culture, a festival of humanity, and is intended to be independent of political, ideological, and diplomatic disagreements, but hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics Games in the PRC, where organized atrocities in the XUAR are ongoing, where the freedoms of Hong Kong’s citizens are being trampled, where the fundamental right to worship is brutally persecuted, and in the wake of the ongoing global devastation from COVID–19, would be immoral, unethical, and wrong: Now, therefore, be itThat the House of Representatives—(1)supports the achievements of the athletes, coaches, and personnel of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee;(2)affirms the values and goals of Olympism;(3)urges the International Olympic Committee to rebid the 2022 Winter Olympics to a country that recognizes and respects human rights;(4)calls on the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee to support human rights and boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics if held in the People’s Republic of China; and(5)calls on the Administration to support international efforts toward a boycott of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games if they are held in China.


		III
		111th CONGRESS
		2d Session
		S. RES. 539
		IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

			May 24, 2010
			Mr. Casey (for himself,
			 Mr. Grassley, and
			 Mr. Kohl) submitted the following
			 resolution; which was considered and agreed to

		RESOLUTION
		Designating May 24, 2010, as
		  Prescription Drug Disposal Awareness Day.

		Whereas in 2008, pharmacies in the United States filled
			 3,649,468,866 retail drug prescriptions;
		Whereas in 2008, approximately 15,200,000 Americans 12
			 years of age and older reported having taken a prescription drug that had not
			 been prescribed to them for recreational purposes in the previous year;
		Whereas in 2006, approximately 26,400 deaths occurred in
			 the United States from an unintentional drug overdose;
		Whereas prescription drugs are involved in more overdose
			 deaths annually than illegal drugs;
		Whereas in 2007 and 2008, 55.9 percent of individuals 12
			 years of age and older who used pain relievers nonmedically in the past year
			 had obtained the pain relievers from a friend or relative for free;
		Whereas in 2007 and 2008, of the individuals 12 years of
			 age and older who obtained nonmedical pain relievers from a friend or relative
			 for free—
			(1)81.7 percent
			 indicated that the friend or relative had obtained the drugs from just 1
			 doctor; and
			(2)1.6 percent
			 reported that the friend or relative had bought the drugs from a drug dealer or
			 other stranger;
			Whereas the improper disposal of prescription drugs may
			 result in chemicals contaminating the environment and water supply; and
		Whereas collection programs may reduce the supply of
			 unused, unwanted prescription drugs in the United States: Now, therefore, be
			 it

		That the Senate—
			(1)designates May
			 24, 2010, as Prescription Drug Disposal Awareness Day;
			(2)recognizes the
			 importance of prescription drug disposal programs to reduce the supply of
			 unused, unwanted prescription drugs in the United States; and
			(3)encourages each
			 State to establish and promote a prescription drug collection program.


114 S2710 IS: Women and Minorities in STEM Booster Act of 2016
U.S. Senate
2016-03-17
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

II114th CONGRESS2d SessionS. 2710IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESMarch 17, 2016Ms. Hirono (for herself, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Heinrich, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Baldwin, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Brown) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and PensionsA BILLTo increase the participation of historically underrepresented demographic groups in science,
			 technology, engineering, and mathematics education and industry.

 1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the Women and Minorities in STEM Booster Act of 2016.
		2.Grant program to increase the participation of women and underrepresented minorities in stem fields
 (a)FindingsCongress finds the following: (1)According to the National Academy of Sciences, STEM education at the undergraduate level is vital to developing a workforce that will allow the United States to remain the leader in the 21st century global economy.
 (2)According to the 2013 American Community Survey Report on disparities in STEM employment, women comprise about half of the United States workforce but only make up 26 percent of STEM workers.
 (3)According to the National Center of Education Statistics, women were more likely than men to switch out of STEM majors—32 percent vs. 26 percent.
 (4)According to the 2010 Association of American University Women report Why So Few? approximately 52 percent of women in STEM fields quit their jobs about 10 years into their careers. It is important for gender equality to increase the retention of women in STEM fields, as women in STEM careers earn 33 percent more than those in non-STEM jobs, and have a smaller wage gap relative to men.
 (5)According to recent Census Bureau projections, minorities will account for 57 percent of the United States population by 2060. According to the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, Inc., as the United States works to remain competitive in the world of technological innovation, the United States should address the need to increase the number of individuals from underrepresented minority segments of the population who work in engineering.
 (6)The Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that, while freshmen from underrepresented minority groups express an interest in pursuing a STEM undergraduate degree at the same rate as all other freshmen, only 22.1 percent of Latino students, 18.4 percent of African-American students, and 18.8 percent of Native American students studying in STEM fields complete their degree within 5 years, compared to an approximate 33 percent and 42 percent 5-year completion rate for White and Asian students, respectively.
 (7)According to the 2015 Asian Americans Advancing Justice report Making America Work, data on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) on average hide the fact that some subgroups are underrepresented in STEM fields. For example: only 9 percent of Cambodian, 8 percent of Laotian, 8 percent of Hmong, and 7 percent of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander workers hold STEM jobs, compared to 12 percent of the total American population holding STEM jobs.
 (8)According to 3-year estimates from the 2013 American Community Survey, Southeast Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have higher poverty rates and lower educational attainment rates compared to the overall population. Fifteen percent of the overall population lives below the Federal poverty level, while 21 percent of Pacific Islanders, 21 percent of Cambodian, 26 percent of Hmong, 17 percent of Laotian, and 16 percent of Vietnamese community members live in poverty. Compared to 29 percent of the overall population with a bachelor’s degree or higher, members of Pacific Islanders, Cambodian, Hmong, Lao, and Vietnamese communities only have a bachelor’s degree or higher at rates of 15 percent, 16 percent, 16 percent, 13 percent, and 27 percent, respectively. Levels of poverty and postsecondary educational attainment correlate with these groups’ underrepresentation in STEM employment. Other Asian American and Pacific Islander subgroups with similar poverty and educational attainment rates are similarly underrepresented in STEM employment.
 (9)A 2014 National Center for Education Statistics study found that women and underrepresented minorities leave the STEM fields at higher rates than their counterparts, leading to a need to develop resources to retain these groups in the STEM fields.
 (b)Program authorizedThe Director of the National Science Foundation shall award grants to eligible entities, on a competitive basis, to enable such eligible entities to carry out the activities described in subsection (d), in order to increase the participation of women and underrepresented minorities in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
 (c)ApplicationEach eligible entity that desires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an application to the National Science Foundation at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director of the National Science Foundation may reasonably require.
 (d)Authorized activitiesAn eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall use such grant funds to carry out one or more of the following activities designed to increase the participation of women or minorities underrepresented in science and engineering, or both:
 (1)Online workshops. (2)Mentoring programs that partner science, technology, engineering, or mathematics professionals with students.
 (3)Internships for undergraduate and graduate students in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
 (4)Conducting outreach programs that provide elementary school and secondary school students with opportunities to increase their exposure to the fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
 (5)Programs to increase the recruitment and retention of underrepresented faculty. (6)Such additional programs as the Director of the National Science Foundation may determine.
 (e)DefinitionsIn this Act— (1)the term minority means American Indian, Alaskan Native, Black (not of Hispanic origin), Hispanic (including persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Central or South American origin), Asian (including underrepresented subgroups), Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander origin subgroup, or other ethnic group underrepresented in science and engineering; and
 (2)the term underrepresented in science and engineering means a minority group whose number of scientists and engineers per 10,000 population of that group is substantially below the comparable figure for scientists and engineers who are White and not of Hispanic origin, as determined by the Secretary of Education under section 637.4(b) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations.
 (f)Authorization of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.


115 HR 7119 IH: To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to continue to pay educational assistance or subsistence allowances to eligible persons when educational institutions are temporarily closed, and for other purposes.
U.S. House of Representatives
2018-11-13
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

I115th CONGRESS2d SessionH. R. 7119IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESNovember 13, 2018Mr. Dunn introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' AffairsA BILLTo amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
			 to continue to pay educational assistance or subsistence allowances to
			 eligible persons when educational institutions are temporarily closed, and
			 for other purposes.

		1.Extension of authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to continue to pay educational
			 assistance or subsistence allowances to eligible persons when educational
 institutions are temporarily closedSection 3680(a)(2) of title 38, United States Code, is amended— (1)by striking the em dash at the end and inserting during the following periods:;
 (2)in subparagraph (A)— (A)by striking during periods and inserting Periods; and
 (B)by striking not exceed 4 weeks; or and inserting only continue until the earlier of—; and  (C)by adding at the end the following new clauses:

 (i)the date of the end of the term, quarter, or semester during which the temporary closure occurred; and
 (ii)the date that is eight weeks after the date of the temporary closure.; and (3)in subparagraph (B)—
 (A)by striking solely and inserting Solely; and (B)by striking during periods and inserting periods.


116 S4180 IS: Protecting Benefits for Retirees Act
U.S. Senate
2020-07-02
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

II116th CONGRESS2d SessionS. 4180IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESJuly 2, 2020Mr. Kaine (for himself and Mr. Cassidy) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on FinanceA BILLTo amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide that the national average wage index for any year shall not be less than the amount of the national average wage index for the preceding year.1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the Protecting Benefits for Retirees Act.2.Modifying the calculation of the Social Security average wage index to conform with the calculation of Social Security cost-of-living adjustments and taxable maximumSection 209(k) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 409(k)) is amended—(1)in paragraph (1), by striking subject to regulations and inserting subject to paragraph (4) and regulations; and(2)by adding at the end the following new paragraph:(4)For any calendar year after 2019, if the average of the total wages for a calendar year is less than the national average wage index applicable under this subsection for the preceding calendar year, the amount of the national average wage index for the calendar year involved shall be the amount of the national average wage index that applied under this subsection for such preceding calendar year..


		I
		112th CONGRESS
		1st Session
		H. R. 929
		IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

			March 3, 2011
			Mr. Nadler introduced
			 the following bill; which was referred to the
			 Committee on Transportation and
			 Infrastructure

		A BILL
		To amend title 49, United States Code, to expand and
		  improve transit training programs.

		1.Short titleThis Act may be cited as the
			 Transportation Job Corps Act of
			 2011.
		2.FindingsCongress finds the following:
			(1)There are millions
			 of young people ages 16 through 24 who are neither in school nor in the labor
			 force.
			(2)According to a
			 report issued by the Community Service Society in June 2008, entitled
			 Out of Focus: A Snapshot of Public Funding to Reconnect Youth to
			 Education and Employment, the young people described in paragraph (1),
			 often referred to as disconnected youth, are largely youth of color from poor
			 communities and at risk of becoming permanently disengaged from the labor
			 market which threatens their ability to break out of the cycle of poverty and
			 contribute to our economy and communities.
			(3)When our young
			 people lack the skills that local industries need and are unable to support
			 themselves, we all bear the financial costs.
			(4)In the coming
			 years, the combination of public transportation industry growth and an aging
			 workforce will produce sizeable new openings in the transit sector.
			(5)There is no
			 pipeline of replacements on the horizon, and the transit industry has been
			 limited in its ability to attract, recruit, and retain employees.
			(6)For the existing
			 workforce, new technology is rapidly changing the way transit agencies
			 function, affecting every sector of the workforce, including executive
			 directors, mid-level managers, bus operators, and mechanics, yet relatively few
			 programs exist to provide training to workers so that they can perform their
			 jobs adequately, move up the career ladder, and help the Nation’s transit
			 agencies operate at maximum efficiency.
			3.Workforce
			 development programs
			(a)Workforce
			 development programTitle 49,
			 United States Code, is amended—
				(1)by striking
			 section 5322; and
				(2)by inserting the
			 following:

						5322.Workforce
				development programs
							(a)National joint
				workforce development council
								(1)EstablishmentNot later than 180 days after the date of
				enactment of the Transportation Job Corps Act of 2011, the Administrator of the
				Federal Transit Administration shall establish a National Joint Workforce
				Development Council (referred to in this section as the National
				Council).
								(2)Composition
									(A)Voting
				membersTwo representatives,
				one representing labor and one representing management, from each Regional
				Workforce Development Board described in subsection (c), shall be elected by
				majority vote of labor and management representatives respectively, on each
				Regional Board, to serve on the National Council.
									(B)Ex Officio
				MembersThe Administrator shall appoint as non-voting ex officio
				members to the National Council—
										(i)up
				to 10 members, such as representatives of transit trade associations,
				non-profit organizations, research organizations, community colleges and
				universities, private industry, and any other group or individual the
				Administrator believes would contribute to the National Council;
										(ii)a
				representative of the International Transportation Learning Center which
				administers the transit career ladder training program authorized pursuant to
				section 3046 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation
				Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (49 U.S.C. 5338 note); and
										(iii)an individual
				who has expertise in youth development programs.
										(3)DutiesThe
				National Council shall with a national focus—
									(A)conduct a prevue
				national study on transit workforce development issues;
									(B)identify skills
				gaps in transit agency maintenance departments and develop programs to train
				maintenance employees and fixed route and paratransit operators;
									(C)develop programs
				to address the recruitment and retention of managerial and non-managerial
				employees;
									(D)initiate
				relationships with nontransportation sector industries, associations, and
				groups in the public and private sector to develop best practices in training
				and skills development and determine appropriate ways to collaborate on behalf
				of disconnected youth;
									(E)conduct research
				on transit workforce development issues and develop best practices for
				recruitment, training, and retention of employees;
									(F)conduct research
				on the extent of labor market disconnection among disconnected youth and assess
				the provision of employment services for such youth;
									(G)make
				recommendations to the Secretary and to public transit agencies regarding how
				to expand current employment training programs, outreach programs to increase
				minority and female employment in public transportation activities, and
				apprenticeship programs;
									(H)develop programs
				and make recommendations to public transit agencies to address issues related
				to workplace quality of life issues, including absenteeism, scheduling, child
				care, and other issues that may be necessary to improve recruitment and
				retention of employees;
									(I)maintain and
				update routinely an electronic library, consisting of such materials as online
				courseware and training manuals, white papers, research materials, and other
				related items;
									(J)provide periodic
				assessments to the Secretary, on studies and programs carried out on the
				national level;
									(K)coordinate
				research and program development of the Regional Boards pursuant to subsection
				(c), to reduce duplication and assure complimentary research goals; and
									(L)make
				recommendations to the Secretary for guidance on grant programs carried out in
				subsection (d) taking into account the recommendations of the Regional
				Boards.
									(b)Regional
				Workforce development councils
								(1)EstablishmentNot later than 90 days after the date of
				enactment of the Transportation Job Corps Act
				of 2011, the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration
				shall establish a workforce development council in each of its 10
				regions.
								(2)Composition
									(A)Selection of
				regional councilsThe
				management of each public transit agency and the labor organization
				representing the majority of employees at each such transit agency in a region
				shall select one representative for the council established under paragraph
				(1).
									(B)Election of
				governing boardThe selected individuals from each transit agency
				shall elect, by majority vote from among members of such council, a governing
				board for the region, including a co-chairperson from among the representatives
				from labor and a co-chairperson from among the representatives from
				management.
									(c)Regional
				Governing Boards
								(1)Composition of
				governing boardsThe governing board for each region shall be
				composed of not more than 10 members elected by the Council pursuant to
				subsection (b)(2).
								(2)DutiesThe
				governing board for each region shall on a regional basis—
									(A)identify skills gaps in transit agency
				maintenance departments and develop programs to train maintenance employees and
				fixed route and paratransit operators on a regional basis;
									(B)develop programs
				to address the recruitment and retention of managerial and nonmanagerial
				employees;
									(C)initiate
				relationships with nontransportation sector industries, associations, and
				groups in the public and private sector to develop best practices in training
				and skills development and determine appropriate ways to collaborate on behalf
				of disconnected youth;
									(D)conduct research
				on transit workforce development issues and develop best practices for
				recruitment, training, and retention of employees;
									(E)conduct research
				on the extent of labor market disconnection among disconnected youth and assess
				the provision of employment services for such youth;
									(F)make
				recommendations to the Secretary and to public transit agencies regarding how
				to expand current employment training programs, outreach programs to increase
				minority and female employment in public transportation activities, and
				apprenticeship programs;
									(G)develop programs
				and make recommendations to public transit agencies to address issues related
				to workplace quality of life issues, including absenteeism, scheduling, child
				care, and other issues that may be necessary to improve recruitment and
				retention of employees;
									(H)provide periodic assessments to the
				Secretary and to the National Joint Workforce Development Council established
				under subsection (a), on studies and programs carried out on the regional
				level; and
									(I)make
				recommendations to the National Joint Workforce Development Council for
				guidance on grant programs carried out under subsection (d).
									(3)Ex officio
				members
									(A)Possible
				appointmentsThe Administrator—
										(i)shall appoint
				representatives in accordance with subparagraph (B); and
										(ii)may appoint
				non-voting ex officio members to each regional governing board from among
				representatives of nonprofit organizations, research organizations, and any
				other groups or individuals the Administrator believes would contribute to the
				board.
										(B)Appointments for
				international transportation learning center and federal transit
				administratorsThe
				Administrator shall appoint as a non-voting ex officio member to the regional
				governing board of the respective region—
										(i)one or more
				representatives of the International Transportation Learning Center which
				administers the transit career ladder training program authorized by section
				3046 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A
				Legacy for Users (Public Law 109–59);
										(ii)the Federal
				Transit Administrators of each of the 10 regions; and
										(iii)an individual
				who has expertise in youth development programs.
										(d)Grant
				programs
								(1)In
				generalThe Secretary, acting through the Administrator and
				taking into account the recommendations of the National Council under
				subsection (a) and the Regional Governing Boards under subsection (c), shall
				establish grant programs as follows:
									(A)Transit youth
				opportunity
										(i)Basic skills
				education and pre-apprenticeship skills
											(I)ApplicationsThe Administrator shall accept applications
				for grants from nonprofit organizations and public or privately funded
				educational institutions providing academic or technical instruction to
				encourage and introduce youth disconnected to a variety of careers in the
				transit industry by providing such youth with basic skills education, if
				necessary, and pre-apprenticeship skills.
											(II)PriorityThe
				Administrator shall give priority for such grants to organizations with a
				proven record of success in providing disconnected youth with basic education
				and pre-apprenticeship skills.
											(ii)ApprenticeshipsThe
				Administrator shall accept applications from partnerships of transit agencies
				and the unions representing non-managerial employees for grants to develop
				local and regional labor-management apprenticeship programs aligned with
				national transit industry apprenticeship programs for a variety of
				transit-related jobs, by giving priority to individuals who have successfully
				completed a pre-apprenticeship program pursuant to clause (i).
										(B)Transit worker
				education and retention grants
										(i)ApplicationsThe Administrator shall accept applications
				from—
											(I)in the case of
				non-managerial employees, partnerships of transit agencies and the unions
				representing non-managerial employees; and
											(II)in the case of
				managerial employees, from providers of management and technical programs for
				the delivery of such programs and the related costs of attendee
				participation.
											(ii)Use of grant
				fundsFunds for a grant under this subparagraph may be
				used—
											(I)to develop
				education programs in a variety of training settings for transit employees from
				diverse population groups to maintain and improve job skills and advance
				employee development across a career span; and
											(II)assisting
				individuals to obtain education and training required to enter the transit
				profession and advance within such profession, such as by providing career
				counseling and mentoring.
											(C)Workforce
				diversity grantsThe
				Administrator shall accept applications from partnerships of transit agencies
				and the unions representing non-managerial employees for a grant to develop
				special projects to increase education opportunities within the transit
				industry for individuals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds, including
				racial and ethnic minorities under-represented among transit management, by
				providing student scholarships or stipends, pre-entry preparation, and
				retention activities.
									(2)Grant
				requirementsA grant under this section shall be subject to all
				requirements of a grant under section 5307.
								(e)FundingIn
				addition to the amounts set forth in section 5315(d), there are authorized to
				be appropriated—
								(1)to carry out
				subsections (a), (b), and (c), $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012
				through 2013; and
								(2)to carry out
				subparagraphs of subsection (d), $90,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 and
				2013.
								(f)CertificationThe
				Administrator shall develop a category on Workforce Development
				on its annual Certifications and Assurances for Federal Transit Administration
				Assistance Programs in accordance with section 5323(n), and include such
				category as one of the areas of certification beginning in fiscal year 2012.
				Such category shall require transit agencies to develop short-range and
				long-range planning with regard to workforce development matters, with a
				particular focus on the recruitment, retention, and training of managerial and
				non-managerial employees.
							(g)DefinitionFor
				purposes of this section, the term disconnected youth means
				individuals ages 16 through 24 who are out of school and not employed and
				composed primarily of youth of color from poor communities and at risk of
				becoming permanently disengaged from the labor market which threatens their
				ability to break out of the cycle of poverty and contribute to our economy and
				communities.
							.