zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
GothamCorps Authorization Act of 2009 - Establishes the GothamCorps program. Directs the Corporation for National and Community Service to provide, through such program, for the award of grants to certain units of local government to carry out volunteer projects. Requires local government units to provide each participant in a volunteer project with a scholarship equal to the cost of one year's tuition at a local public college. Authorizes grant funding from amounts made available in the National Service Trust.

Date: 2009-03-05
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
School Food Recovery Act - Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to require schools participating in the school lunch program to donate any excess food under such program to tax-exempt food banks or charitable organizations in their localities.

Date: 2009-03-09
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Education
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services. Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations exempting a length of service award program from treatment as an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Date: 2009-03-30
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Best Buddies Empowerment for People with Intellectual Disabilities Act of 2009 - (Sec. 3) Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to, or enter into agreements with, Best Buddies (a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people with intellectual disabilities mesh with mainstream society) to promote the expansion of its programs. Prohibits the use of funds appropriated pursuant to this Act for the direct treatment of diseases, medical conditions, or mental health conditions. (Sec. 4) Requires Best Buddies' application for a grant or agreement to include specific measurable goals and objectives to be achieved. Requires Best Buddies to report annually to Congress on the degree to which it is making progress toward such goals and objectives. (Sec. 5) Authorizes appropriations for such grants or agreements from FY2010-FY2014.

Date: 2009-03-31
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Education
Restitution for the Exonerated Act of 2009 - Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants and supplemental funds to nonprofit organizations to be used only to provide support services (e.g., employment training, health care services, and legal assistance) to exonerees. Prohibits services for exonerees who have not demonstrated financial need or for a period of more than 24 months. Defines "exoneree" as an individual who has been convicted of a crime carrying a prison sentence of one year or more, has served at least six months of such prison sentence, and has been determined to be factually innocent of the crime.

Date: 2009-04-23
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Assistance to Individuals Delivering for America Act of 2009 or the AID for America Act of 2009- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers a business tax credit for 50 percent of the wages paid to employees serving as disaster relief volunteers. Limits the amount of such credit to $100 per day per employee.

Date: 2009-05-18
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Supporting Emergency Responders Volunteer Efforts Act of 2009 or the SERVE Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a $1,000 refundable tax credit for individuals who are bona fide volunteer members of a qualified volunteer emergency response organization who provide firefighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, and ambulance services.

Date: 2009-05-21
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Veterans Nonprofit Research and Education Corporations Enhancement Act of 2009 - (Sec. 2) Amends federal provisions concerning the establishment at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facilities of nonprofit research and education corporations (NRECs) to allow an NREC to facilitate the conduct of research or education, or both, at more than one VA medical center. States that such an NREC shall be known as a multi-medical center research corporation (MCRC). Allows an NREC to act as a MCRC if: (1) the NREC board of directors approve a resolution permitting that NREC to act as a MCRC; and (2) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs approves the resolution. Requires each NREC and MCRC (corporation) to be established in accordance with the nonprofit corporation laws of the state in which the VA medical center which it supports is located. States that neither such corporation shall be considered to be owned by, or an agent or instrumentality of, the United States. (Sec. 3) Restates the purposes of the corporations, including with respect to their role in: (1) providing a flexible funding mechanism; and (2) residencies or similar programs. (Sec. 4) Modifies the composition of corporation boards of directors. Revises requirements concerning non-VA members of boards of directors of NRECs and MCRCs to: (1) state a minimum number who are not officers or employees of the federal government; and (2) expand the required areas of experience or expertise. Allows a corporation executive director to be an employee of the VA. Removes financial relationship restrictions from conflict of interest standards applicable to directors. (Sec. 5) Increases authorized corporate powers of the corporations to include entering into contracts and setting fees for education and training facilitated through a corporation. (Sec. 7) Revises annual report procedures to modify the thresholds for the obtaining of audits and require submission of an Internal Revenue Service return form applicable to organizations exempt from income tax. Revises conflict of interest policies applicable to directors, officers, and employees of a corporation to apply the policy adopted by the corporation (under current law, they are subject to federal laws and regulations applicable to federal employees). Revises requirements for a report to Congress to increase the threshold for providing information identifying payees of the corporation.

Date: 2009-06-09
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Prohibits making any criminal penalty apply for refusing or willfully neglecting to answer questions (except with respect to the respondent's name and contact information, the date of the response, and the number of people living or staying at the address) in connection with the American Community Survey conducted by the Secretary of Commerce.

Date: 2009-07-08
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Reauthorization Act of 2009 - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions allowing a tax exclusion for benefits paid to volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers by states and local government by: (1) increasing the amount of benefits excludible; and (2) extending such tax exclusion through 2013.

Date: 2009-09-29
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Groundwork USA Trust Act of 2010 - Establishes the Groundwork USA Trust Program. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Groundwork USA national office, to award grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to: (1) provide training, research, and technical assistance to individuals and organizations to facilitate the inventory of brownfield sites, site assessments, remediation of brownfield sites, community involvement, or site preparation; (2) reclaim vacant and derelict lands for conservation, recreation, and economic development; (3) clean up and care for neglected areas; (4) return brownfields to economically productive use; (5) integrate environmental education, food security, health and fitness, resource management, and job training; (6) encourage businesses, local governments, nonprofits, and communities to work together for sustainable environmental care and enhancement; (7) support businesses, local governments, nonprofits, and communities in efforts to improve their local environment; (8) acquire real property and buildings to rehabilitate and improve upon for the local community and perform maintenance on such property and buildings; and (9) develop programs that encourage regional and national partnering with other environmental organizations. Limits the maximum amount for a grant award under the program to $400,000 for any fiscal year. Requires annual reporting by grant recipients.

Date: 2010-04-22
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Environmental protection
Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Act or the STOP Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise and expand the program to reduce underage drinking by: (1) expressing the sense of Congress that the age-21 minimum drinking law has been an effective public health and safety policy and has reduced drinking and driving traffic fatalities; (2) expanding the national media campaign to prevent underage drinking; (3) authorizing the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in coordination with the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, to make supplemental grants to eligible entities to enhance collaboration between communities and institutions of higher education to prevent and reduce underage alcohol use; (4) requiring the Administrator to make grants to professional pediatric provider organizations to increase effective practices, including the screening of children and adolescents for alcohol use, to reduce the prevalence of alcohol use among individuals under the age of 21, including college students; (5) expanding data collection and research activites with respect to underage drinking; and (6) requiring the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a review of the research on the influence of drinking alcohol on adolescent brain development and the public policy implications of such research.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Health
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain support organizations for tax-exempt teaching hospitals to acquire debt secured by income-producing real property used to provide financial support for such hospitals.

Date: 2009-01-06
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Green-Collar Youth Jobs, Education, and Training Stimulus Act - Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of Labor to expand the Job Corps program to: (1) establish a Green Job Corps program that provides for the development of academic skills and paid jobs in green-collar industries to create a corps of energy- and environmentally-conscious consumers; and (2) award YouthBuild Build Green Grants and Green-Collar Youth Opportunity Grants to eligible entities and organizations to provide eligible youth with education, jobs, and training in green-collar industries, including the weatherization and energy retrofitting of low-income homes and buildings.

Date: 2009-01-15
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Labor and employment
Semester of Service Act - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to direct the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service to award competitive matching grants to local educational agencies or their nonprofit partners and, through them, competitive subgrants to schools or their nonprofit partners for Semester of Service programs that allow high school juniors and seniors to earn academic credit for service-learning that meets unmet human, educational, environmental, or public safety needs in their communities. Gives grant priority to applicants that propose to direct subgrants toward programs at schools that receive school improvement funds under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Requires Semester of Service programs to engage youth in service-learning for a minimum of 70 hours over a minimum of 12 weeks and have: (1) a weekly classroom-based component that is integrated into schools' regular curricula and aligned with applicable state academic content standards; and (2) a field-based component covering at least 24 of the minimum 70 hours. Directs the Chief Executive Officer to reserve funds for: (1) competitive grants to Indian tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands for such programs; (2) technical assistance and training to grantees and subgrantees, and program outreach activities; and (3) independent evaluations of the programs.

Date: 2009-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Education
Summer of Service Act of 2009 - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to create Summer of Service programs providing at least 100 hours of summer community service learning opportunities to youth who will subsequently enroll in grades six through nine. Requires the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service to provide competitive three-year grants to: (1) states under a State Grant program; and (2) public or private organizations under a National Direct Grant program, when a state does not apply for funding or the community service program includes multiple states. Requires states and organizations, in making project subgrants, to favor entities with established track records that: (1) have leadership positions in the communities from which participating youth will be drawn; (2) focus on youth service during the transition year before high school; (3) encourage or enable youth to continue providing community service throughout the school year; (4) involve youth in the design and operation of the community service project; and (5) include youth of diverse backgrounds, at least 50% of which are from low-income families. Permits such entities to charge the parents of participants an income-based fee to contribute to the nonfederal share of project costs. Makes each youth serving at least 100 hours in a service-learning project eligible for an educational award of up to $500.

Date: 2009-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Education
Encore Service Act of 2009 - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to make eligible for assistance under the National Service Trust program Encore Service programs that engage individuals age 50 or older in national service addressing specific community needs. Gives Encore Service participants age 50 or older five options for their term of service, ranging from full-time to minimum time. Makes such participants eligible for national service educational awards, which they may transfer to others for use within 20 years. Expresses the sense of Congress that, by 2019, 25% of National Service Trust program participants should be age 50 or older. Requires the Corporation for National and Community Service to identify and address the barriers to program participation by such individuals. Establishes Encore Fellowship programs providing Encore Fellowships to professionals age 50 or older who serve as full-time volunteers for nine months to one year with public or nonprofit organizations that address unmet human, educational, environmental, or public safety needs. Makes such Fellows ineligible for national service educational awards. Creates Silver Scholarship programs providing Silver Scholarships to individuals who, over a one-year period, complete: (1) at least 500 hours of volunteer service after attaining age 55; or (2) between 250 and 500 hours of such service and present compelling personal experiences. Allows such individuals to transfer their scholarships to others for use within 20 years. Directs the Corporation to specify the services that qualify volunteers for scholarships, including: (1) tutoring or mentoring in educational settings; and (2) assisting persons with special needs. Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to allow anyone age 55 or older (currently, 60 or older) whose income does not exceed 200% (currently, 125%) of the poverty level to volunteer under the Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion programs that provide supportive services to persons with exceptional needs. Reauthorizes appropriations for the National Senior Volunteer Corps, including the Retired and Senior Volunteer, Foster Grandparent, and Senior Companion programs.

Date: 2009-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Global Service Fellowship Program Act of 2009 - Directs the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to: (1) establish and administer a Global Service Fellowship Program to fund fellowships to promote international volunteering opportunities as a means of building bridges across cultures, addressing critical human needs, and promoting mutual understanding; and (2) establish the Office of Volunteers for Prosperity to implement the Global Service Fellowship Program. Sets forth Program provisions. Authorizes appropriations.

Date: 2009-03-12
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: International affairs
Boys & Girls Clubs Centennial Reauthorization Act of 2009 - Amends the Economic Espionage Act of 1966 to reauthorize through FY2015 the mandate for an annual grant to the Boys & Girls Club of America from the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the Department of Justice. Repeals the limitation on the use of such grants to expansion of the organization to 1,500 additional Boys and Girls Clubs for a total number of at least 5,000 Boys and Girls Clubs of America facilities in operation before January 1, 2010. Replaces the expansion requirement with a goal of improving the quality of youth development and educational programs, health, physical fitness, and prevention services for youth at existing and new Boys & Girls Clubs facilities, with special emphasis on reducing high school dropout rates. Authorizes appropriations for FY2011-FY2015.

Date: 2009-12-22
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Youth Corps Act of 2010 - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to authorize the Secretary of Labor to make grants to eligible public or private nonprofit agencies or organizations to carry out Youth Corps programs that utilize the Youth Corps model to provide eligible youth age 16 through 24 with education and work readiness training to enable them to find employment in the economy of the 21st century, and instill in them a sense of civic engagement and environmental stewardship. Defines "Youth Corps model" as a youth education and training program for which an eligible entity provides eligible youth, among other things, with stipended or paid work experience and basic and technical skills training leading to: (1) enrollment in postsecondary education or training; (2) attainment of an industry-recognized certification or credential; (3) meaningful employment in the economy of the 21st century; or (4) military service.

Date: 2010-03-25
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Labor and employment
Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act - Reauthorizes the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act of 2004 for FY2011-FY2015. Directs the Secretary of State to act through the Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs in awarding grants or entering agreements with Special Olympics for activities outside the United States. Includes community-based prevention among the activities for which the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) may award grants or enter into agreements with Special Olympics. Requires grant or agreement applications to include a description of specific measurable annual benchmarks, as well as long-term goals and objectives, to be achieved through specified activities, which must include: (1) activities to increase the full participation of people with intellectual disabilities in inclusive school and community activities with nondisabled people; (2) education programs that dispel negative stereotypes about people with intellectual disabilities; and (3) activities to increase the participation of people with intellectual disabilities in Special Olympics outside of the United States. Requires annual reports by Special Olympics to describe demographic data about Special Olympics participants. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements to promote the expansion of Best Buddies, including activities to increase the participation of people with intellectual disabilities in social relationships and other aspects of community life, including education and employment, within the United States. Directs the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to institutions of higher education to establish Eunice Kennedy Shriver Institutes for Sport and Social Impact. Requires recipients to use grant funds to advance the quality of life and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities through research and evaluation, technical assistance, training, data collection, evaluation, collaboration, and dissemination of evidence-based best practices.

Date: 2010-04-29
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Health
Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social Work Reinvestment Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Social Work Reinvestment Commission to provide independent counsel to Congress on policy issues associated with the recruitment for, and retention, research, and reinvestment in, the profession of social work. Directs the Commission to study and report to Congress on issues facing the social work profession, including: (1) fair market compensation, high social work educational debt, social work workforce trends, translating social work research to practice, and social work safety; and (2) state-level social work licensure policies and reciprocity agreements for providing services across state lines. Requires such study to assess the professional capacity of the social work workforce to serve and respond successfully to the increasing biopsychosocial needs of individuals, groups, and communities in certain areas, including aging and child welfare. Terminates the Commission 30 days after it submits such report within 18 months of its first meeting. Authorizes the Secretary to award: (1) workplace improvement grants to eligible entities and individuals to address workplace concerns for the social work profession, including caseloads, compensation, social work safety, supervision, and working conditions; and (2) research grants, education and training grants, and community-based programs of excellence grants. Directs the Secretary to: (1) contract with a national social work entity to serve as a coordinating center and clearinghouse for information on activities funded under the grants, and (2) develop a multi-media outreach campaign and issue public service announcements that advertise and promote the social work profession.

Date: 2011-03-15
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Groundwork USA Trust Act of 2011 - Establishes the Groundwork USA Trust Program. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Groundwork USA national office, to award grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to: (1) facilitate the inventory of brownfield sites, site assessments, remediation of brownfield sites, community involvement, or site preparation; (2) reclaim vacant and derelict lands; (3) cleanup and care for neglected areas; (4) return brownfields to productive use; (5) integrate environmental education, food security, health and fitness, resource management, and job training; (6) encourage and support business, local government, nonprofit, and community cooperation in sustainable environmental care and enhancement; (7) acquire, rehabilitate, and improve real property and buildings; and (8) develop programs that encourage partnering with other environmental organizations.

Date: 2011-05-13
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Environmental protection
Supporting Emergency Responders Volunteer Efforts Act of 2011 or the SERVE Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual taxpayer who is a bona fide volunteer of a qualified volunteer emergency response organization a $1,000 refundable tax credit.  Requires such individual to: (1) have served as a bona fide volunteer performing fire fighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, and ambulance services for more than six months in a taxable year; (2) have provided more than 40 hours of such services actively engaged in the prevention, control, or extinguishmment of fires or response to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk; or (3) have been stationed on the premises of an emergency response organization in anticipation of being actively engaged in providing such services.

Date: 2011-07-11
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Firefighter Fairness Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat qualified emergency service volunteers as independent contractors, not employees, for tax purposes. Defines "qualified emergency service volunteers" to include volunteers performing fire fighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, and ambulance services.

Date: 2011-07-22
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) increase the tax deduction for charitable contributions of qualified wild game meat by the processing fees paid with respect to such contributions, and (2) exclude from the gross income of meat processors processing fees paid by a charitable organization for the processing of donated wild game meat. Defines "qualified wild game meat" as the meat of any animal typically used for human consumption but only if: (1) such animal is killed in the wild by the individual making the charitable contribution and is hunted or taken in accordance with all state and local laws, (2) the meat is processed for human consumption by a licensed processor, and (3) the meat is apparently wholesome as determined by regulations under the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act.

Date: 2011-10-06
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Freedom Act - Repeals the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (NCSA) and the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (DVSA) one year after this Act's enactment. (The NCSA authorizes the Learn and Serve America, AmeriCorps, and National Civilian Community Corps [NCCC] programs. The DVSA authorizes the Volunteers in Service to America [VISTA] and National Senior Service Corps programs.) Preserves the educational awards volunteers earn before the NCSA and DVSA are repealed.

Date: 2012-01-18
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Supporting Emergency Responders Volunteer Efforts Act of 2011 or the SERVE Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a $1,000 refundable tax credit for individuals who are bona fide volunteer members of a qualified volunteer fire department who provide firefighting, ambulance, or emergency medical services.

Date: 2011-05-10
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions allowing a tax exclusion for benefits paid to volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers by states and local government by: (1) increasing the amount of benefits excludible, and (2) extending such tax exclusion through 2013.

Date: 2011-05-10
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Medical-Legal Partnership for Health Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a nationwide demonstration project to: (1) award matching grants or enter into contracts with medical-legal partnerships to assist patients and their families in navigating health-related programs and activities, and (2) evaluate the effectiveness of such partnerships. Authorizes the Secretary to provide technical assistance to grantees to support the establishment and sustainability of medical-legal partnerships. Requires amounts received under this Act to be used to achieve one or more of the following goals: (1) enhancing access to health care services, (2) improving health outcomes for low-income individuals, (3) reducing health disparities among health disparities populations, (4) enhancing wellness and prevention of chronic conditions and other health problems, (5) reducing cost of care to the health care system, (6) addressing the social determinants of health, and (7) addressing situational contributing factors. Prohibits funds under this Act from being used: (1) for any medical malpractice action or proceeding, (2) to provide any support to an alien who is not a qualified alien or a nonimmigrant under the Immigration and Nationality Act or an alien who is paroled into the United States under such Act for less than one year, (3) to provide legal assistance with respect to any proceeding or litigation which seeks to procure an abortion or to compel any individual or institution to perform or assist in the performance of an abortion, or (4) to initiate or participate in a class action lawsuit. Requires the Secretary to study and report to Congress on the results of such project. to provide any state or local public benefit support to an alien who is ineligible for such a benefit

Date: 2011-09-22
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Health
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2011- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services. Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations exempting a length of service award program from treatment as an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Date: 2011-11-18
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Universal National Service Act - Declares that it is the obligation of every U.S. citizen, and every other person residing in the United States, between the ages of 18 and 25 to perform a 2-year period of national service, unless exempted, either through military service or through civilian service in a federal, state, or local government program or with a community-based agency or entity engaged in meeting human, educational, environmental, or public safety needs. Requires induction into national service by the President. Allows persons to be inducted only: (1) under a declaration of war or national emergency, or (2) when members of the Armed Forces are engaged in a contingency operation. Requires each person, before induction, to be examined physically and mentally for classification for fitness to perform. Sets forth provisions governing: (1) induction deferments, postponements, and exemptions, including exemption of a conscientious objector from combatant training and military service; and (2) discharge following national service.

Amends the Military Selective Service Act to authorize the military registration of females.

Date: 2013-02-15
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services.

Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue guidance clarifying that a length of service award program is not an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Date: 2013-03-06
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Directs (under current law, in each case authorizes) the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to: (1) lend equipment and supplies and furnish services in support of Boy Scout Jamborees, (2) provide transportation for attendees of any national or world Jamboree, and (3) provide personnel services and logistical support at any Jamboree held on a military installation.

Allows the Secretary to furnish such transportation to the extent it will not interfere with national security (under current law, with the requirements of military operations).

Date: 2013-03-12
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that volunteers who use their automobiles for the benefit of a charitable organization may exclude from their gross income reimbursements for their automobile operating expenses at the same level as business employees (i.e., 56.5 cents per mile in 2013).

Date: 2013-03-15
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Amends Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax exclusion for benefits paid to volunteer firefighters and emergency medical providers by states and local governments, to: (1) increase the amount of benefits excludible; and (2) make such tax exclusion available for taxable years beginning in 2014, 2015, or 2016.

Date: 2013-12-12
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Promoting National Service and Reducing Unemployment Act - Makes FY2014 supplemental appropriations to the Corporation for National and Community Service (Americorps) to provide additional funds for:

 operating expenses, salaries and administrative expenses, and the Office of Inspector General. Requires Americorps to: (1) use the funds to increase the number of national service positions approved under the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to 500,000, and (2) give preference to national service programs that propose to use full-time national service positions.

Date: 2014-02-11
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Community Gardening and Nutrition Act of 2014 - Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to require the Director of the Corporation for National and Community Service to establish a Community Garden Pilot Program under the Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) program.

Requires the Program to address the health and nutrition of individuals in low-income and underserved communities through activities that include:

 creating new community gardens and supporting and expanding existing community gardens; recruiting local community members to actively engage in community gardens and gardening projects; transforming vacant places into community garden plots; increasing community members' access to healthy foods and local foods while also encouraging them to stay active; expanding anti-poverty efforts by teaching basic nutrition and self-reliance through community gardening; and developing initiatives that increase the community's access to healthy, locally grown foods. Requires the Director to carry out at least 40 projects under the Program.

Requires the Director to give priority to: (1) volunteers with experience in health, nutrition, and gardening; (2) projects located in varied geographic regions; and (3) selecting a balance of urban and rural projects.

Date: 2014-02-25
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Humanitarian Firefighter Relief Act - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 and the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to grant duty-free treatment of donated fire-fighting and rescue and relief equipment and supplies imported by or on behalf of a qualified tax-exempt nonprofit charitable organization for purposes of the inspection and subsequent donation and export of those items to countries and organizations in need.

Date: 2014-03-13
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Foreign trade and international finance
Good Samaritan Protection for Construction, Architectural, and Engineering Volunteers Act - Grants construction companies and architectural and engineering firms and their employees immunity from liability for negligence, except for gross negligence or willful misconduct, when providing emergency assistance on a voluntary basis in response to a declared emergency or disaster, in good faith, and without expectation of compensation.

Date: 2014-03-13
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Law
Charitable Automobile Red-Tape Simplification Act of 2014 or the CARS Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax deduction for charitable contributions, to modify the substantiation rules for donations of qualified vehicles (i.e., motor vehicles manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads, and highways and boats or airplanes) to require: (1) a statement with respect to such qualified vehicles and a good faith estimate of their value at the time of donation; and (2) a contemporaneous written acknowledgement of the contribution by the donee organization, with information about the donor and the qualified vehicle.

Date: 2014-06-25
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Strengthening Charities Through Transparency Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require tax-exempt organizations to file their returns in electronic form and to make such returns available to the public in a machine readable format as soon as practicable.

Requires: (1) states, upon the request of the Attorney General, to make available information on charities or charity management officials who have been convicted of fraud, theft, or a financial offense; and (2) the Attorney General to establish a database that lists each such charity or charity management official.

Date: 2014-07-30
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Emergency Responders Tax Deduction Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat firefighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, civil air patrol, and emergency rescue services rendered by a bona fide volunteer as a charitable contribution to the organization for which such services are rendered for purposes of the tax deduction for charitable contributions. Limits to 300 the amount of hours of services which a volunteer may render to an organization in a taxable year.

Date: 2014-12-09
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services.

Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations exempting a length of service award program from treatment as an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Date: 2013-03-07
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on September 26, 2013. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Congressional Award Program Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Amends the Congressional Award Act to extend the date for termination of the Congressional Award Board from October 1, 2013, to October 1, 2018.

Date: 2013-07-23
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Congress
Notice for Organizations That Include Charities is Essential (NOTICE) Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the Secretary of the Treasury to notify any tax-exempt organization, not later than 300 days after such an organization fails to file its annual tax return or other required information for two consecutive years, that: (1) the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has no record of its return or information for two consecutive years, and (2) a penalty will occur if the organization fails to file its return or information by the next filing deadline. Allows the reinstatement of the tax-exempt status of such an organization without the requirement of an application if: (1) the organization demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that it did not receive the notice required by this Act, and (2) it files an annual return or required information for the current year.

Date: 2014-05-15
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Philanthropic Enterprise Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt the holdings of a private foundation in any business enterprise that meet specified requirements relating to exclusive ownership, minimum distribution of net operating income for the charitable purpose (all profits to charity), and independent operation (i.e., not controlled by a substantial contributor or family members) from the excise taxes on excess business holdings and unrelated business income.

Date: 2014-07-30
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Emergency Responders Tax Deduction Act

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat firefighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, civil air patrol, and search and rescue services rendered by a bona fide volunteer as a charitable contribution to the organization for which such services are rendered for purposes of the tax deduction for charitable contributions. Limits to 300 the amount of hours of services which a volunteer may render to an organization in a taxable year.

Date: 2015-01-14
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2015 

 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow sponsors of certain deferred compensation plans to elect to include length of service award plans for bona fide volunteers providing firefighting and fire prevention services, emergency medical services, ambulance services, and emergency rescue services.

Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue guidance clarifying that a length of service award program is not an employee pension benefit plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Date: 2015-02-27
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Volunteer Organization Protection Act of 2015

Amends the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 to expand liability protections to volunteer nonprofit organizations for harm caused by an act or omission of a volunteer on behalf of the organization.

Prohibits such liability protections from applying if the organization: (1) would be liable under laws governing the direct or vicarious liability of organizations, and (2) expressly authorized the specific conduct constituting the act or omission.

Bars such an organization from liability for harm caused by the organization, or a volunteer acting on its behalf, if the act or omission was at the request of, or pursuant to an authorization by, a state, the United States, or another governmental subdivision, provided that: (1) the requesting or authorizing governmental entity would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages if it had engaged in the acts or omissions itself or through employees or independent contractors; or (2) the governmental employee, agent, or contractor would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages by virtue of immunity extended to individual governmental actors.

Prohibits punitive damages from being awarded against a volunteer nonprofit organization for the actions of a volunteer within the scope of the volunteer's responsibilities to the organization unless the claimant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the organization itself expressly authorized the volunteer's action with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of the individual harmed.

Date: 2015-05-13
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Law
This bill amends the Truth in Lending Act to deem mortgage appraisal services donated by a fee appraiser to an organization eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions to be customary and reasonable.

Date: 2015-10-07
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Housing and community development
Groundwork USA Trust Act of 2015

 Establishes the Groundwork USA Trust Program.

Authorizes the Department of the Interior to award grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to: (1) facilitate the inventory of brownfield sites, site assessments, remediation of brownfield sites, community involvement, or site preparation; (2) reclaim vacant and derelict lands; (3) cleanup and care for neglected areas; (4) return brownfields to productive use; (5) integrate environmental education, food security, health and fitness, resource management, and job training; (6) encourage and support business, local government, nonprofit, and community cooperation in sustainable environmental care and enhancement; (7) acquire, rehabilitate, and improve real property and buildings; and (8) develop programs that encourage partnering with other environmental organizations.

Date: 2015-10-07
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill amends the charter of the Gold Star Wives of America corporation to repeal the prohibition against any actions by the corporation or by a director or officer that contribute to, support, or participate in any political activity or in any manner attempt to influence legislation.

Date: 2015-11-19
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Promoting National Service and Reducing Unemployment Act 

This bill provides FY2016 supplemental appropriations to the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) for:

 Operating Expenses, Salaries and Expenses, and the Office of Inspector General. The CNCS must: (1) use the funds to increase the number of national service positions approved under the National and Community Service Act of 1990, and (2) give preference to programs which propose to use full-time national service positions.

Date: 2016-03-21
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Social welfare
Delivering Elderly Lunches and Increasing Volunteer Engagement and Reimbursements Act of 2016 or the DELIVER Act of 2016

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the standard mileage rate for the tax deduction for the charitable use of a passenger automobile to deliver meals to homebound individuals who are elderly, disabled, frail, or at risk. The bill increases the rate from the standard charitable rate of 14 cents per mile to the standard business mileage rate, which is 54 cents per mile for 2016.

Date: 2016-04-14
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation
Segal AmeriCorps Education Award Tax Relief Act of 2016 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any AmeriCorps educational awards provided under the National and Community Service Act of 1990.

Date: 2016-04-14
Topic: Social Welfare (Volunteer Associations)
Subject: Taxation