zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
United States International Communications Reform Act of 2015

Revises U.S. international broadcasting and communications structures, missions, and objectives.

Requires U.S. international broadcasting to incorporate specified standards.

Establishes the United States International Communications Agency (USICA), consisting of the Voice of America (VOA) and the offices of the International Broadcasting Bureau.

Directs USICA and the Freedom News Network (FNN) to ensure that U.S. international broadcasting is conducted only to countries and regions that: (1) lack democratic rule and domestic media that provides accurate news, and (2) would benefit U.S. national security.

Expresses the sense of Congress that VOA: (1) has been an indispensable element of U.S. foreign policy and public diplomacy efforts, and (2) would benefit from a recalibration of federal international broadcasting agencies and resources.

Requires VOA to adhere to specified principles and carry out specified duties and responsibilities.

Requires Radio Marti and Television Marti, which constitute the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, to: (1) continue programming and content production consistent with their mission under the Radio Broadcasting to Cuba Act and the Television Broadcasting to Cuba Act, and (2) continue to exist within VOA.

Requires USICA and FNN to consult with the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Defense, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in order to assess international developments.

Repeals the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994.

Expresses the sense of Congress that RFE/RL, Incorporated, Radio Free Asia, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Incorporated share a common mission with distinct geographic foci, and should therefore be merged into a single organization with distinct marketing brands to provide news and related programming and content in countries where free media are not established.

Consolidates RFE/RL Incorporated, Radio Free Asia, and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Incorporated into FNN to carry out all international broadcasting activities supported by the U.S. government. Retains the brand names of the individual grantees.

Specifies FNN standards and principles, including consistency with broad U.S. foreign policy objectives.

Directs USICA and FNN to establish procedures to vet and monitor employees for affiliations to terrorist organizations, foreign governments to protect against espionage, sabotage, foreign propaganda messaging, and other subversive activities.

Date: 2015-05-14
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Prohibits funds available to the Department of State or any other department or agency from being used to provide contributions to the United Nations Population Fund.

Date: 2015-06-04
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Prohibits funds made available to any federal agency for FY2015 and subsequent fiscal years from being used to make U.S. voluntary contributions to the regular budget of the United Nations or any U.N. agency.

Date: 2015-06-12
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Prohibits funds made available to any federal department or agency from being used to make U.S. voluntary contributions to the United Nations Democracy Fund.

Date: 2015-07-23
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
UNRWA Anti-Incitement and Anti-Terrorism Act 

This bill amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to withhold U.S. contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) or to any successor or related entity, or to the regular budget of the United Nations (U.N.) for the support of UNRWA or a successor entity, unless the Department of State certifies to Congress that:

 no UNRWA official, employee, representative, or affiliate is a member of a foreign terrorist organization, has propagated anti-American, anti-Israel, or anti-Semitic rhetoric, or has used UNRWA resources to propagate political materials regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; no UNRWA facility is used by a foreign terrorist organization; no UNRWA school uses educational materials that propagates anti-American, anti-Israel, or anti-Semitic rhetoric; no recipient of UNRWA funds or loans is a member of a foreign terrorist organization; UNRWA is subject to auditing oversight; and UNRWA holds no accounts or other affiliations with financial institutions deemed by the United States to be complicit in money laundering and terror financing. U.S. contributions to UNRWA are limited during the period for which a certification is in effect.

It is the sense of Congress that:

 the President and the Department should lead a diplomatic effort to encourage other nations to withhold contributions to UNRWA, or to the regular budget of the U.N. for the support of UNRWA, until UNRWA has met these conditions; citizens of recognized states should be removed from UNRWA's jurisdiction; UNRWA's definition of a "Palestine refugee" should be changed to that used for a refugee by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); and responsibility for the Palestinian refugees should be fully transferred to UNHCR.

Date: 2015-10-26
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Berta Caceres Human Rights in Honduras Act

This bill prohibits funds from being made available to Honduras for the police and military (including for equipment and training), and directs the Department of the Treasury to vote against multilateral loans to Honduras for its police and military, until the Department of States certifies that the government of Honduras has:

 prosecuted members of the military and police for human rights violations and ensured that such violations have ceased; established the rule of law and guaranteed a judicial system capable of bringing to justice members of the police and military who have committed human rights abuses; established that it protects the rights of trade unionists, journalists, human rights defenders, government critics, and civil society activists to operate without interference; withdrawn the military from domestic policing; and brought to trial and obtained verdicts against those who ordered and carried out the attack on Felix Molina and the killings of Berta Caceres, Joel Palacios Lino, Elvis Armando Garcia, and over 100 small-farmer activists in the Aguan Valley.

Date: 2016-06-14
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today (JUST) Act of 2016

This bill directs the Department of State, with respect to covered countries, to annually include within either the relevant Annual Country Report on Human Rights, the International Religious Freedom Report, or other appropriate report an assessment of the nature and extent of national laws or enforceable policies regarding the identification, return, or restitution of wrongfully seized or transferred Holocaust era assets and compliance with the goals of the Terezin Declaration on Holocaust Era Assets and Related Issues, including:

 the return to the rightful owner of wrongfully seized or transferred property, including religious or communal property, or the provision of comparable substitute property or the payment of equitable compensation to the rightful owner; the use of the Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art and the Terezin Declaration in settling claims involving publicly and privately held movable property; the restitution of heirless property to assist needy Holocaust survivors; and progress on the resolution of claims for U.S. citizen Holocaust survivors and family members. "Covered countries" means signatories to the Terezin Declaration that are determined by the Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues to be countries of particular concern with respect to such restitution.

Date: 2016-07-07
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Iraq and Syria Genocide Relief and Accountability Act of 2016

This bill directs the Department of State to provide assistance to entities taking specified criminal and judicial actions against individuals who are suspected of committing genocide, crimes against humanity, or war crimes in Iraq since January 2014 or in Syria since March 2011.

The State Department shall encourage foreign governments to identify and prosecute individuals who are suspected of committing such crimes, including members of foreign terrorist organizations operating in Iraq or Syria.

The Department of Justice shall review existing criminal statutes concerning genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes to determine:

 the extent to which U.S. courts have jurisdiction over such crimes where the perpetrators or victims are U.S. nationals, residents, or persons present in a U.S. territory; current statutes that would apply to such conduct and whether additional statutory authorities are necessary; and the extent to which the absence of criminal statutes defining the crimes or granting jurisdiction impede their prosecution in U.S. courts. The State Department shall identify:

 threats of persecution, genocide, crimes against humanity, and forced migration against members of Iraqi or Syrian religious or ethnic groups with respect to whom the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has committed such crimes in Iraq or Syria since January 2014 or who are members of other persecuted religious or ethnic groups; humanitarian, stabilization, and recovery needs of these individuals; and assistance provided by the United States, the U.N., and other entities, including faith-based entities. The Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 is amended to:

 include as a category for U.S. refugee determinations aliens who are or were nationals and residents of Iraq or Syria and who share common characteristics that identify them as targets of persecution on account of religion or membership in an ethnic minority in such foreign states, include in such category aliens who are or were nationals and residents of Iraq or Syria and who are members of a religious or ethnic community against which genocide has been committed or that has otherwise been identified as a persecuted group, and extend such Act's coverage to refugee applications submitted before October 1, 2017.

Date: 2016-09-08
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Coptic Churches Accountability Act

This bill directs the Department of State, until 2021, to submit an annual report describing:

 the progress made in restoring or repairing Christian religious property and property owned by Christians in Egypt that was damaged or destroyed during the August 2013 sectarian violence; implementation of the law Egypt passed in 2016 that imposes significant burdens on church building; and the nature and extent of Egyptian laws and policies regarding the construction of Christian churches or places of worship. The State Department shall ensure that each country report on human rights practices for Egypt and each report on international religious freedom contains:

 a summary of the progress made in restoring religious property; and a list of each Christian church, place of worship, or other Christian religious property and each item of property belonging to a Christian church that was damaged or destroyed.

Date: 2016-09-08
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
This bill prohibits U.S. funds from being made available to the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization if, on or after September 16, 2016, the U.N. Security Council adopts a resolution that obligates the United States or affirms a purported obligation of the United States to refrain from actions that would run counter to the treaty.

Date: 2016-09-20
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the House passed version is repeated here.)

Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2016

(Sec. 5) This bill allows civil claims or causes of action for the recovery of artwork or certain other property lost between January 1, 1933, and December 31, 1945, because of Nazi persecution to be commenced within six years after the claimant's actual discovery of: (1) the identity and location of the artwork or other property, and (2) a possessory interest in the artwork or property.

Such statutory limitation period of six years after actual discovery preempts any other statutes of limitation or defenses relating to the passage of time.

Preexisting claims known by a claimant before enactment of this bill shall be considered discovered on the date of this bill's enactment if they were barred before, or not barred on, the date of enactment.

This bill applies to claims or actions that are: (1) pending on the date of this bill's enactment, including an action for which the time to file an appeal has not expired; or (2) filed after enactment but before 2027. But the bill does not apply to claims barred on the day before enactment of this bill if: (1) the claimant had knowledge on or after January 1, 1999, and (2) six years have passed from the date such claimant acquired such knowledge and during which time the claim was not barred by a statute of limitations.

Date: 2016-09-22
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: Law
Combating European Anti-Semitism Act of 2016

This bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) it is in the U.S. national interest to combat anti-Semitism at home and abroad; (2) there is a need to ensure the security of European Jewish communities, including synagogues, schools, and cemeteries; and (3) the United States should continue to emphasize the importance of combating anti-Semitism in multilateral bodies.

The International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 is amended to require the Department of State's Annual Report on International Religious Freedom to include, for each European country in which threats or attacks against Jewish persons, schools, and religious institutions are particularly significant, a description of:

 the security challenges and needs of European Jewish communities and European law enforcement agencies; U.S. efforts to partner with European law enforcement agencies and civil society groups to combat anti-Semitic incidents; educational programming and public awareness initiatives that impart values of pluralism and tolerance, showcase the positive contributions of Jews, and pay special attention to population segments that exhibit a high degree of anti-Semitic animus; and efforts by European governments to adopt and apply a working definition of anti-Semitism.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act of 2016

This bill allows a beneficiary of a Holocaust-era life, dowry, education, annuity, property, or other insurance policy to bring a civil action in a U.S. district court against the insurer for the covered policy to recover proceeds due or, otherwise, to enforce any rights under the policy.

 The bill covers any policy that was: (1) in effect at any time from January 31, 1933, to December 31, 1945; and (2) issued to a policy holder domiciled in any area that was occupied or controlled by Nazi Germany, an ally or friendly government, or the territorial jurisdiction of Switzerland.

 The bill requires the award: (1) to a prevailing beneficiary of the amount of the proceeds due under the policy, plus prejudgment interest at 6% per year, compounded annually, calculated from the date the amount was originally due; and (2) of treble damages against any insurer that acted in bad faith.

 A civil action under this bill must be filed within 10 years after enactment of this bill.

 A prior judgment or release entered for any claim arising under a covered policy in any civil action in a federal or state court shall not impair a claim brought under this bill.

Any executive agreement between the United States and a foreign government or any executive foreign policy of the U.S. government shall not supercede or preempt any state law or compromise, settle, extinguish, waive, preclude, bar, or foreclose any claim brought under this bill.

 A claim brought under state law within 10 years after enactment of this billshall not be deemed untimely on the basis of any state or federal statute of limitations or on the basis of any other legal or equitable rule or doctrine governing timeliness.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2016

This bill amends the federal criminal code to establish a process to vacate convictions and expunge arrests for criminal offenses committed by trafficking victims that directly result from or relate to having been a trafficking victim.

A trafficking victim may file a motion to: (1) vacate a conviction for a nonviolent offense that does not include a child victim (i.e., under age 18); (2) expunge records of an arrest for a nonviolent offense that does not include a child victim; or (3) expunge records of an arrest for an offense that is violent or that includes a child victim, if the charges are reduced, dismissed, or disposed of.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Expresses the sense of Congress that, now that evidence is available that nullifies the most controversial aspects of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict (the Goldstone Report), the United Nations (U.N.) should formally retract the Report.

Directs the Secretary of State to withhold U.S. contributions to the regularly assessed U.N. biennial budget until the U.N. formally retracts the Report.

Defines "formally retracts" as a U.N.-adopted resolution stating that insufficient information relating to the Report's subject matter was available before its release and that the Report is annulled.

Date: 2015-01-07
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Annual Report on United States Contributions to the United Nations Act

Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to report annually to Congress regarding all assessed and voluntary U.S. contributions to the United Nations (U.N.) and its affiliated agencies and related bodies during the previous fiscal year.

Requires the report to include:

 the total amount of all assessed and voluntary U.S. contributions to the U.N. and its affiliated agencies and related bodies; the approximate percentage of U.S. contributions to each such agency or body in a fiscal year when compared with all such contributions in that fiscal year; and the amount, description, and purpose of each contribution, the identity of the donating U.S. department or agency, and the identity of the recipient U.N. agency or body. Requires the first report to include information for the previous five fiscal years.

Requires OMB to post a public version of the report on a publicly available Internet website.

Date: 2015-05-07
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Block Arms to Iran Act of 2015

This bill declares that, of the amounts appropriated or otherwise made available for the Department of State for "Contributions to International Organizations" and available for contributions to the United Nations, 20% may not be obligated or expended for that purpose if the arms embargo on Iran pursuant to Security Council Resolutions 1747 and 1929 is lifted, reduced, or otherwise eased.

Date: 2015-07-23
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Limiting Contributions to the United Nations and Affiliated Organizations that Accord the Palestine Liberation Organization the Same Standing as Member States Act

This bill directs the Department of State to ensure that the use of federal funding supporting the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, including the Green Climate Fund, complies with applicable federal law, including:

 provisions of the United Nations Participation Act of 1945 authorizing appropriations for the U.S. annual payment to the U.N. and for necessary salaries and expenses of U.S. representatives to the U.N., provisions of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991 prohibiting making funds authorized under such Act available to the U.N. or any specialized agency that accords the Palestine Liberation Organization the same standing as member states, and provisions of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 prohibiting contributions to the U.N. or to any affiliated U.N. organization that grants full state membership to a group that does not have internationally recognized attributes of statehood.

Date: 2016-05-12
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

(Sec. 1) This bill amends the International Organizations Immunities Act to authorize the President to extend the provisions of such Act to the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf to the same extent, and subject to the same conditions, as may be extended to a public international organization in which the United States participates pursuant to any treaty or under the authority of any Act of Congress.

(The International Organization Immunities Act entitles covered international organizations and their employees to certain exemptions, immunities, and privileges similar to the benefits granted to foreign governments.)

Date: 2016-05-17
Topic: International Affairs (Organizations)
Subject: International affairs
Social Security KidSave Accounts Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to create a new part B (KidSave Accounts). Directs the Commissioner of Social Security to establish in the name of each individual born on or after January 1, 2008, an individual retirement account in the Thrift Savings Fund known as a KidSave Account. Requires such Account to be treated in the same manner as an account maintained by a federal employee under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) (into which contributions by or on behalf of the individual are deposited into one or more designated investment funds).Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund to each account holder's KidSave Account: (1) $2,000, on the date such individual's KidSave Account is established; plus (2) other, including rollover, contributions, by or on behalf of the individual, the aggregate amount of which in the case of any individual below age 19 is capped at $500 for any taxable year. Provides for the treatment of distributions.Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any rollovers into a KidSave Account.

Date: 2007-01-05
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Social welfare
Community Reinvestment Modernization Act of 2007 - Repeals specified revisions to regulations governing the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Director of the Office of Thrift Supervision. Reinstates banking agency regulations in effect before the publication of such revisions. Amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 (BHCA) to subject to the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 (CRA) nonbank affiliates of bank holding companies that engage in lending or offering banking products or services. Amends the CRA to require a rating reduction for a regulated financial institution engaged in negative credit practices, including predatory and discriminatory lending. States that securities companies, mortgage banks, and insurance companies have a continuing affirmative obligation to meet the financial services needs in their assessment areas, including those of low- and moderate-income neighborhoods and persons of modest means. Requires their affiliates to attain satisfactory ratings in accordance with this Act. Insurance Disclosure Act - Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish requirements for insurers to submit information annually regarding noncommercial insurance, rural insurance, and investments by insurers. Requires the Secretary to make such information public. Directs the Financial Institutions Examination Council to maintain a comprehensive database containing the hierarchical structure of financial holding companies, bank holding companies, depository institutions, and non-depository institutions. Amends the BHCA to allow certain expanded financial activities by a bank holding company only if it or its affiliate has neither: (1) been adjudicated in federal court; nor (2) entered into a consent decree or settlement agreement, premised upon a violation of the Fair Housing Act (antiredlining requirement). Requires: (1) public meetings regarding bank acquisitions and mergers; and (2) a period for public comment regarding branch closures. Amends the CRA to subject all regulated financial institutions, regardless of size or aggregate assets, to mandatory biennial examinations.

Date: 2007-03-01
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2008- Expands the federal prohibition against state taxation of interstate commerce to: (1) include taxation of out-of-state transactions involving all forms of property, including intangible personal property and services (currently, only sales of tangible personal property are protected); and (2) prohibit state taxation of an out-of-state entity unless such entity has a physical presence in the taxing state. Sets forth criteria for determining that a person has a physical presence in a state.

Date: 2008-02-07
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Taxation
Private Property Rights Protection and Government Accountability Act - Makes any state or political subdivision thereof that carries out a public taking for any private purpose in or affecting interstate commerce ineligible for any federal economic development funds for ten fiscal years. Entitles any owner of private property subject to such a taking to injunctive and declaratory relief. Authorizes appropriations for the Department of Commerce for FY2009-FY2013.

Date: 2008-06-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Civil rights and liberties, minority issues
National Offshore Aquaculture Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish an operating permit process for the development and operation of offshore aquaculture facilities in areas of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Requires the Secretary to prepare an analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect to the process for issuing permits. Authorizes the Secretary to issue such permits. Prohibits considering offshore aquaculture "fishing" under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Prohibits permits for facilities within 12 miles of a coastal state if the state opposes the activities. Authorizes the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to designate a zone around a facility in which incompatible installations, structures, or uses are prohibited. Requires the Secretary of Commerce, for permits for facilities in certain areas subject to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, to obtain the concurrence of the Secretary of the Interior and the consent of lessees, operators, and owners. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) establish and conduct an integrated, multidisciplinary, scientific research and development program to further marine aquaculture technologies that are compatible with the protection of marine ecosystems; and (2) conduct research and development in partnership with permit holders. Directs the Secretary to conduct research to reduce the use of wild fish in aquaculture feeds.

Date: 2007-06-13
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Global Competitiveness Act of 2008 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to extend the annual cap exemption for returning H-2B aliens (temporary nonagricultural workers). Revises H-1B nonimmigrant visa (specialty occupation) provisions regarding: (1) recapture of unused visas (including a recapture fee); (2) visa increases and increases for exemptions from numerical limitations for aliens with higher education degrees; (3) increased employer petition fees; (4) employer restrictions on outsourcing, advertising, and hiring; and (5) enforcement, information sharing, and labor application penalty increases. Amends the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 regarding: (1) recapture of unused employment-based immigrant visas and redistribution to specified employment categories, including nurses and physical therapists; and (2) a recapture fee (with an exemption for certain health care facilities). Increases the annual limit for National Science Foundation low-income scholarships. Revises L-visa (intracompany transfer) provisions regarding: (1) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) authority to investigate employer fraud; (2) whistleblower protections; and (3) limitations on approval of start-up company petitions. Authorizes (with a supplemental fee) early status adjustment filing for certain employment-based immigrants. Obligates funds from the H-1B Nonimmigrant Petitioner Account for programs under the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act of 2001. Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1966 to extend the E-Verify program.

Date: 2008-04-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Immigration
Commercial Seafood Consumer Protection Act - Directs the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to establish a program to strengthen federal activities for ensuring that commercially distributed seafood meets federal food quality and safety requirements. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to enter into an agreement to strengthen cooperation on seafood safety, including regarding examining and testing seafood imports, inspections of foreign facilities, technical assistance and training of foreign facilities for marine aquaculture, establishing a distribution chain tracking system, and labeling. Directs the Secretary to increase the number of laboratories certified to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. Authorizes the Secretary to increase the number and capacity of laboratories operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) involved in testing and other activities under this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to send inspectors to an originating country or exporter to assess seafood practices and processes and to provide technical assistance related to Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) requirements.

Date: 2009-03-05
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Agriculture and food
Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2009 or TIFIA of 2009 - Revises terms of secured loans and lines of credit used to finance certain transportation infrastructure projects to increase the maximum loan amount for such projects from the lesser of 33% to the lesser of 49% of the eligible project costs or, if the loan does not receive an investment grade rating, the amount of the senior project obligations. Increases the total amount of the line of credit for such projects from 33% to 49% of the reasonably anticipated eligible project costs. Declares that, in the event of the obligor's bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation, a direct loan from the Secretary of Transportation for an infrastructure project shall not be subordinated to the claims of any holder of project obligations entered into after (not including such obligations issued to refund prior project obligations), or not contemplated by the parties at the time, the Secretary's agreement to provide the line of credit is entered into. Authorizes appropriations for FY2010-FY2015 for such projects.

Date: 2009-06-02
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Discount Pricing Consumer Protection Act of 2009 - Declares that any agreement setting a price below which a product or service cannot be sold by a retailer, wholesaler, or distributor is an illegal restraint of trade in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

Date: 2009-07-13
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Makes emergency supplemental appropriations of $2 billion for FY2009 and FY2010 to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of the Department of Transportation (DOT) for the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program (Cash for Clunkers Program). Amends the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program to require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the DOT Inspector General to review and report to Congress on the administration of the program.

Date: 2009-07-31
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Transportation and public works
National Commission on American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 - Establishes in the legislative branch the National Commission on American Recovery and Reinvestment. Requires the Commission to: (1) investigate and make findings on the number of jobs saved or created as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; and (2) make recommendations on changes that could be made to such Act to save or create more jobs as well as steps that could be taken to prevent the improper payment of funds allocated under it.

Date: 2009-12-08
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Economics and public finance
Early-Stage Business Investment and Incubation Act of 2010 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish an early-stage business investment and incubation grant program (program) to support the development of early-stage businesses engaged primarily in the research, development, manufacturing, production, or marketing of specified technologies, aerospace, communications, or transportation. Limits individual grants to $5 million. Requires each grant recipient under the program to: (1) designate an individual as the grant fund manager; (2) establish a grant investment committee; and (3) assign to each assisted business a grant collaborator. Directs the Secretary to monitor and evaluate program effectiveness.

Date: 2010-05-26
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Firearms Excise Tax Improvement Act of 2010 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require: (1) excise taxes on recreational equipment to be due and payable on the date for filing the return for such taxes (i.e., quarterly); and (2) the Secretary of the Treasury to assess and collect, in the same manner as delinquent taxes are assessed and collected, mandatory orders of restitution for victims of crime. Increases by 0.25% in the third quarter of 2015 the estimated tax payments of corporations with assets of not less than $1 billion. Provides for compliance of the budgetary effects of this Act with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010.

Date: 2010-06-17
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Taxation
Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010 - Amends the federal criminal code to revise the prohibition against depictions of animal cruelty to prohibit anyone from knowingly creating an animal crush video if: (1) such person intends or has reason to know that such video will be distributed in, or using a means or facility of, interstate or foreign commerce; or (2) such video is distributed in, or using a means or facility of, interstate or foreign commerce. Prohibits the sale, marketing, exchange, or distribution of such videos in interstate or foreign commerce. Defines "animal crush video" as any photograph, motion picture, film, video or digital recording, or electronic image that: (1) depicts actual conduct in which one or more living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles, or amphibians is intentionally crushed, burned, drowned, suffocated, impaled, or otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury; and (2) is obscene. Extends the applicability of this Act to a person selling, marketing, advertising, exchanging, distributing, or creating animal crush videos outside the United States if: (1) such person intends or has reason to know that the animal crush video will be transported into the United States or its territories or possessions; or (2) the video is so transported. Imposes a fine and/or prison term of up to seven years for violations of this Act. Exempts from the application of this Act: (1) any visual depiction of customary and normal veterinary or agricultural husbandry practices, the slaughter of animals for food, or hunting, trapping, or fishing; and (2) good faith distribution of an animal crush video to a law enforcement agency or a third party for the sole purpose of determining if referral to a law enforcement agency is appropriate. Provides for compliance of the budgetary effects of this Act with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010.

Date: 2010-06-22
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Technology Deployment and Early-Stage Business Investment Act of 2010 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a technology deployment and early-stage business investment grant program under which the Secretary makes grants to business accelerators (public or private nonprofit institutions, including academic institutions) to support the development of early-stage businesses in specified industries. Limits grants to $5 million per accelerator. Requires the Secretary to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of each accelerator under the program.

Date: 2010-09-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Main Street Recovery Act - Provides for a 15% investment tax credit through June 30, 2010, for the purchase of business equipment and machinery. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through June 30, 2010, the additional 50% depreciation allowance (bonus depreciation) for business and investment property; (2) allow such depreciation for nonresidential real property or residential rental property; and (3) extend through 2010 the increased expensing allowance for depreciable business assets and expand the types of depreciable property eligible for expensing.

Date: 2009-01-22
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Taxation
Net Operating Loss (NOL) Carryback Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a five-year carryback of net operating losses, including the operating losses of life insurance companies, incurred in 2008 and 2009. Denies such extended loss carryover period to: (1) taxpayers in whom the federal government acquires an equity interest under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008; (2) the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac); and (3) members of certain affiliated groups.

Date: 2009-04-02
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Taxation
USA Jobs Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a manufacturer who has domestic production gross receipts that are greater than 50% of total production gross receipts an increased tax credit for research expenditures, including energy research.

Date: 2009-05-12
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Taxation
Free Enterprise Act of 2009 - Requires congressional approval before any Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds are provided or obligated to any entity, on and after May 29, 2009, whose receipt of such funds would result in federal government acquisition of its common or preferred stock.

Date: 2009-06-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Economics and public finance
Export Promotion Act of 2010 - (Sec. 2) Directs the Secretary of Commerce to increase the number of full-time departmental employees whose primary responsibilities involve promoting or facilitating participation by U.S. businesses in the global marketplace and facilitating the entry into, or expansion of, such participation. Requires the Secretary to ensure that global marketplace promotional activities include promoting and facilitating participation by small and medium-sized manufacturing businesses. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 3) Authorizes appropriations for the Department of Commerce's program to improve access to the global marketplace for goods and services provided by rural businesses. (Sec. 4) Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary to promote or facilitate participation by U.S. businesses in the global marketplace and facilitate the entry into, or expansion of, such participation. Requires the Secretary to give preferences to activities that: (1) assist small and medium-sized businesses in the United States; and (2) will create or sustain the greatest number of jobs in the United States and obtain the maximum return on investment. (Sec. 5) Authorizes appropriations to expand ExporTech, a joint program of the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program. (Sec. 6) Authorizes appropriations for the Manufacturing and Services unit of the International Trade Administration (ITA) of the Department of Commerce for the ITA's Market Development Cooperator Program. Requires, in the use of such funds, the same preference to be given to activities described in section 4, above. (Sec. 7) Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to authorize the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in making awards for the creation and support of regional centers for the transfer of manufacturing technology, to consider whether an applicant has significant potential for enhancing the competitiveness of small and medium-sized U.S. manufacturers in the global marketplace, and to give a preference to applicants for such projects. Authorizes the Director, in making awards under the technology innovation program, to make the same consideration. (Sec. 8) Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Secretary should enhance federal collaboration with the states on export promotion issues. (Sec. 9) Directs the Secretary to report to Congress on the tariff and nontariff barriers imposed by Colombia, the Republic of Korea, and Panama with respect to exports of U.S. firms, including small and medium-sized manufacturing firms.

Date: 2010-03-05
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Minority Business Development Improvements Act of 2010 - Requires the Director of the Minority Business Development Agency to establish the Minority Business Development Program to provide qualified minority businesses with technical assistance and contract procurement assistance. Outlines minority business qualification requirements for the Program, including that: (1) not less than 51% of the entity be directly and unconditionally owned or controlled by historically disadvantaged individuals; and (2) each officer or other individual exercising control over regular operations is a historically disadvantaged individual. Outlines specific types of technical assistance authorized under the Program. Authorizes the Director to enter into agreements for the fulfillment of federal procurement contracts by, and contracting opportunities for, qualified minority businesses. Provides contract limits. Allows the Director to terminate a qualified minority business from the Program under specified circumstances.

Date: 2010-12-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Ticket Act - Prohibits any ticket issuer from prohibiting or restricting the resale or offering for resale of an event ticket by a lawful possessor. Includes among prohibited activities: (1) purporting to impose license or contractual terms on the initial sale that restrict the terms and conditions under which a ticket may be resold, and (2) requiring the purchaser of a ticket to agree not to resell the ticket or to resell the ticket only through an approved channel. Establishes consumer protection minimum standards applicable to all persons engaging in the trade or business of acting as a ticket issuer, engaging in the resale of more than 25 event tickets in any one year, or providing a physical or electronic market for the sale or resale of event tickets by other persons. Includes within such standards requirements to: (1) maintain a toll-free telephone number for complaints and inquiries, and (2) implement and publicize a standard refund policy that provides for a full refund under specified circumstances. Requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce a violation of this Act as an unfair or deceptive act or practice. Authorizes states to file civil actions to enforce this Act. Establishes damages for violations of this Act. Preempts any state or local law that limits the price at which an event ticket may be resold. Exempts from this Act: (1) sponsors or promoters of charitable events for which all tickets are distributed without charge; and (2) not-for-profit educational institutions for athletic events involving their athletes or teams with respect to tickets initially distributed to students, faculty, staff, or alumni without charge or to members of bona fide booster organizations.

Date: 2011-03-08
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Regulation Moratorium Act of 2011 - Prohibits any federal department or agency from putting into force any rule until January 31, 2013, except a rule which involves U.S. military or foreign affairs functions or matters relating to agency management or personnel or to public property, loans, grants, benefits, or contracts or for which notice of proposed rulemaking is not otherwise required.

Date: 2011-03-29
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Minority Business Development Improvements Act of 2011 - Requires the Director of the Minority Business Development Agency to establish the Minority Business Development Program to provide qualified minority businesses with technical assistance and contract procurement assistance. Outlines minority business qualification requirements for the Program, including that: (1) not less than 51% of the entity be directly and unconditionally owned by historically disadvantaged individuals, and (2) each officer or other individual exercising control over regular operations is a historically disadvantaged individual. Outlines specific types of technical assistance authorized under the Program. Authorizes the Director to enter into agreements for the fulfillment of federal procurement contracts by, and contracting opportunities for, qualified minority businesses. Provides contract limits. Allows the Director to terminate a qualified minority business from the Program under specified circumstances.

Date: 2011-05-13
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Commerce
Amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to make Public Company Accounting Oversight Board disciplinary proceedings public unless the Board, on its own motion or after considering the motion of a party, orders otherwise.

Date: 2011-11-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (General)
Subject: Finance and financial sector