zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Title I: Benefit Matters - (Sec. 101) Extends, for those separated or released on or after June 15, 2005, the termination of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) coverage for totally disabled veterans to two years after their separation or release from active duty or active duty for training of at least 30 days. (Sec. 102) Allows a veteran under age 60 and insured under Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI) for less than the maximum SGLI amount ($400,000) to increase at renewal the VGLI coverage by up to $25,000 at the time of renewal. (Sec. 103) Entitles a surviving spouse to a benefit for the month of a veteran's death if, at the time of the veteran's death: (1) the veteran was receiving veterans' disability compensation or veteran's pension; or (2) the veteran was not receiving such compensation or pension but had a claim pending for the month of the veteran's death for which benefits would have been payable had the veteran not died. Prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) from requesting the return of a check or payment made to a surviving spouse, in the month in which the veteran's death occurs, as additional compensation for a dependent or additional pension as a married veteran. (Sec. 104) Includes under the VA's presidential memorial certificate program (a program presenting a presidential certificate of appreciation for service in the Armed Forces) an individual who dies during active service. Title II: Loan Guaranty Matters - (Sec. 201) Deems as satisfying occupancy requirements necessary for a veteran's housing loan the occupancy by a veteran's dependent child, when the veteran is in active duty status and therefore unable to occupy the property. (Sec. 202) Allows the Secretary, in determining whether a VA-guaranteed housing loan is secured by a first lien, to either disregard or allow for subordination to a superior lien created by a recorded covenant in favor of a public entity that has provided or will provide assistance in response to a major disaster as declared by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Title III: Other Matters - (Sec. 301) Requires the VA to adjudicate appeals for relief from findings of mental incompetence made under the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) within 180 days after their receipt. Deems granted any appeals not processed within such period.

Date: 2010-09-02
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Formerly Owned Resources for Veterans to Express Thanks for Service Act of 2010 or FOR VETS Act of 2010 - Authorizes the transfer of federal surplus property to a state agency for distribution through donation within the state for purposes of education or public health for organizations whose membership comprises substantially veterans and whose representatives are recognized by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) in the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of claims under laws administered by the Secretary.

Date: 2010-09-16
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Military Family-Friendly Employer Award Act - Establishes in the Department of Defense (DOD) an annual award to be known as the Military Family-Friendly Employer Award (Award) for non-federal employers that have developed and implemented workplace flexibility policies and practices: (1) to assist the working spouses and caregivers of members of the Armed Forces who are deployed away from home, and to assist such members upon their return from deployment; and (2) that reflect a deep awareness and commitment in response to the needs of the military family unit. Establishes in DOD a Military Family-Friendly Special Task Force to provide specified assistance in the making of such Awards.

Date: 2010-09-21
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Help Veterans Own Franchises Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow business franchisors and veterans who purchase a franchise tax credits for a specified percentage of the fees paid to purchase the franchise. Requires the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide information about the tax credits in this Act to veterans service organizations and advocacy groups.

Date: 2010-09-22
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Taxation
Directs the Secretary of the Army to submit to the congressional defense, homeland security, and veterans committees an accounting of the gravesites at Arlington National Cemetery, including, among other things, whether such gravesites are correctly identified, labeled, and occupied. Requires the Comptroller General to report to such committees on the management and oversight of burial operations contracts at such Cemetery. Directs the Secretary of the Army to submit to the appropriate congressional committees biennial reports on the execution of and compliance with Army Directive 2010-04, Enhancing the Operations and Oversight of the Army National Cemeteries Program.

Date: 2010-09-28
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Spouse Employment Programs Evaluation Act - Directs the Comptroller General to annually: (1) review all current Department of Defense (DOD) military spouse employment programs; and (2) report review results to the congressional defense committees. Requires the Secretary of Defense to annually submit to such committees the number of military spouses who have obtained employment following participation in such DOD programs.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Honor America's Guard-Reserve Retirees Act - Honors as a veteran any person entitled to retired pay for nonregular (reserve) service or, but for age, would be so entitled. Provides that such person shall not be entitled to any benefit solely by reason of such recognition.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Directs the Secretary of the Army to: (1) continue the Wounded Warrior Careers Demonstration (Careers) program being conducted in collaboration with the Army Wounded Warrior program at three locations pursuant to a memorandum of understanding between the Army and the National Organization on Disability; and (2) expand the Careers program to nine additional locations in FY2011. States that the purpose of the Careers program expansion shall be to identify and disseminate best practices related to employment counseling and job placement of severely wounded warriors into civilian communities and careers, and to assess various additional means to support the transition and reintegration of such warriors into such communities and careers. Requires: (1) all locations chosen under the expansion to have a large concentration of severely wounded warriors who are ready for career and employment counseling; and (2) the Careers program to be carried out at least until five years after the enactment of this Act. Allows Careers program services to be provided to severely wounded warriors of other branches of the Armed Forces pursuant to joint agreement. Directs the Secretary to continue to provide for the dissemination to other federal departments and agencies, state and local governments, and appropriate nonprofit organizations of lessons learned and best practices developed under the Careers program on the provision of benefits, services, and support to severely wounded warriors. Requires the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to report on the Careers program to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) and specified congressional committees.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 to extend the period for the submission by members of the Armed Forces of claims for retroactive stop-loss special pay (paid to members whose enlistment or period of obligated service was extended, or whose eligibility for retirement was suspended, by the President in time or war or national emergency) from one to two years after the date on which implementing rules for such payments take effect.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to ensure that: (1) each member of the Armed Forces who is discharged, released, or otherwise separated from service participates in DOD's Transition Assistance Program; and (2) such Program's programs and services are also accessible by all members of the National Guard and reserves. Outlines services available under the Program, including employment and training information, available educational benefits, and financial management and computer training. Requires the Secretary to submit to the congressional defense and education committees: (1) four semiannual reports on the status of implementation of requirements under this Act; and (2) a one-time report on the Program's evolution and results.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Combating Military Counterfeits Act of 2010 - Amends the federal criminal code to impose criminal penalties on persons who traffic in counterfeit goods or services identified as meeting military standards or that are intended for use in a military or national security application. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review and amend federal sentencing guidelines and policy statements to reflect the intent of Congress to increase penalties for trafficking in counterfeit goods or services, including military good or services.

Date: 2010-11-15
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Makes eligible for certain medical services and benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) a child with spina bifida whose veteran-parent served on active duty during the Vietnam era at a location outside Vietnam where exposure to a herbicide agent during such service was likely, and is determined to have been exposed to such agent during such service.

Date: 2010-11-17
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
National Guard, Reserve, "Gray Area" Retiree, and Surviving Spouses Space-available Travel Equity Act of 2010 - Authorizes space-available travel on military aircraft, on the same basis as active-duty members, for members of the reserves. Authorizes such travel, on the same basis as members entitled to retired pay, for: (1) a member or former member of the reserves who is entitled to retired pay but for attaining the required age (generally, 60); and (2) unremarried widows and widowers of retired members entitled to retired pay or of members who died in the line of duty or as the result of a line-of-duty condition. Authorizes such travel for certain dependents of such members, if accompanying the member.

Date: 2010-11-17
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Allows former members of the Armed Forces who were retired or separated for physical disability to use Department of Defense (DOD) commissary stores and morale, welfare, and recreation facilities on the same basis as members on active duty.

Date: 2010-11-17
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 - Provides for repeal of the current Department of Defense (DOD) policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces, to be effective 60 days after the Secretary of Defense has received DOD's comprehensive review on the implementation of such repeal, and the President, Secretary, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) certify to the congressional defense committees that they have considered the report and proposed plan of action, that DOD has prepared the necessary policies and regulations to exercise the discretion provided by such repeal, and that implementation of such policies and regulations is consistent with the standards of military readiness and effectiveness, unit cohesion, and military recruiting and retention. Provides that, until such time as the above conditions are met, the current policy shall remain in effect.

Date: 2010-12-09
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 - Provides for repeal of the current Department of Defense (DOD) policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces, to be effective 60 days after the Secretary of Defense has received DOD's comprehensive review on the implementation of such repeal, and the President, Secretary, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) certify to the congressional defense committees that they have considered the report and proposed plan of action, that DOD has prepared the necessary policies and regulations to exercise the discretion provided by such repeal, and that implementation of such policies and regulations is consistent with the standards of military readiness and effectiveness, unit cohesion, and military recruiting and retention. Provides that, until such time as the above conditions are met, the current policy shall remain in effect.

Date: 2010-12-10
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Helping Heroes Keep Their Homes Act of 2010 - Amends the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 to extend through December 31, 2012, a specified protection for servicemembers against mortgage foreclosure, maintaining through such date the stay of proceedings period of 9 months (instead of 90 days, as under previous law).

Date: 2010-12-22
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Belated Thank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 2011 - Establishes in the Treasury the Merchant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund for payments by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) of a monthly benefit of $1,000 to each individual who, between December 7, 1941, and December 31, 1946, was a documented member of the U.S. merchant marine (including the Army Transport Service and the Naval Transport Service) serving as a crewmember of a vessel that was operated in U.S. waters by the War Shipping Administration or the Office of Defense Transportation and under contract to, or the property of, the United States. Requires such individuals to: (1) apply for such benefit within one year after the enactment of this Act; and (2) not have received benefits under the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944. Requires the Secretary to include, in annual budget documents submitted to Congress, detailed information on the Fund's operation.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Veterans Outreach Improvement Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish, maintain, and modify as necessary procedures for ensuring the effective coordination of outreach activities of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) between and among the Office of the Secretary, the Office of Public Affairs, the Veterans Health Administration, the Veterans Benefits Administration, and the National Cemetery Administration. Directs the Secretary to give priority to state and county outreach assistance in locations that: (1) have relatively large concentrations of veterans; or (2) are experiencing growth in veteran populations. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to state or county veterans agencies for state and local outreach services.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Dependent Care Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide health care for the physical and mental injuries suffered by a spouse, child, or dependent parent victim of abuse by a veteran who is enrolled in the VA patient enrollment system and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury, as long as such victim is not eligible for medical coverage under a federal or state program or otherwise covered by a private medical insurance policy. Requires a report from the Secretary to the congressional veterans committees addressing any VA challenges or concerns in verifying psychological abuse in such individuals.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Housing, Employment, and Living Programs for Veterans Act of 2011 or HELP Veterans Act of 2011 - Changes the standard of visual acuity required for eligibility for veterans' specially adapted housing assistance provided through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Authorizes the VA to guarantee a veterans' housing loan regardless of whether such loan is subordinate to a lien created in favor of a public entity that provides assistance in response to a major disaster. Extends through 2016 VA authority to issue and guarantee certificates or other securities evidencing an interest in a pool of mortgage loans. Increases the authorized amount of the veterans' educational assistance allowance for flight training. Increases authorized payments to veterans pursuing internships or on-job training under VA educational assistance programs. Reauthorizes through June 30, 2020, certain qualifying VA work-study activities that lapse as of June 30, 2013. Expands the VA's work-study allowance program to allow student veterans to conduct certain veterans' outreach activities in congressional offices. Provides, through FY2013, a reduction in the percentage of wages to be provided by employers under VA on-job training programs. Reauthorizes through 2020 the Veterans' Advisory Committee on Education. Directs the Secretary to: establish a team of individuals to review new technologies, processes, and products and determine those that may be beneficial to the VA or to veterans served by the VA. Directs the Secretary to provide limited reimbursement for the cost of child care provided by a licensed provider to a veteran who: (1) is participating in a VA vocational rehabilitation program; (2) is the sole caretaker of the child; and (3) would not otherwise be able to afford such care. Increases the amount of reporting fees payable to educational institutions that enroll veterans receiving VA educational assistance. Revises the way the VA charges a veteran's entitlement in the case of advance payment of an educational or subsistence allowance. Increases the monthly subsistence allowance payable to service-disabled veterans participating in VA training and rehabilitation. Directs the Secretary to pay a subsistence allowance, for up to three months, to a rehabilitated service-disabled veteran pursuing a VA program of employment services. Authorizes the Secretary to hold an annual veterans entrepreneurial development summit. Increases the maximum annual amount of VA specially adapted housing assistance. Includes under VA authority to guarantee certain housing loans to veterans a loan for the construction of a new dwelling and the cost of making energy efficiency improvements to such dwelling. Prohibits assistance provided under the VA's temporary residence adaptation program from counting toward the dollar limits under veterans' specially adapted housing assistance programs, but limits such exemption to the first 25 grants made during FY2012.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
TBI Treatment Act - Directs the Secretaries of Defense (DOD) and Veterans Affairs (Secretaries) to carry out a five-year pilot program under which each Secretary establishes a process for providing payments to facilities for treatments of traumatic brain injury (TBI) or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) received by members of the Armed Forces and veterans in facilities other than military treatment facilities or Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facilities. Subjects such payments to specified conditions, including approved treatment or study protocols. Requires the VA Secretary to notify each veteran with a service-connected injury or disability of the opportunity to receive such treatment or study protocol. Requires the Secretaries to jointly: (1) develop and maintain a database containing data from each patient case involving the use of such treatments; and (2) report annually to Congress on the implementation of this Act.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to include on the main page of the website of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) a hyperlink with a drop-down menu titled "Veterans Employment" that includes a direct hyperlink to the VetSuccess website, USA Jobs website, Job Central website, and any other appropriate employment websites, especially those that focus on jobs for veterans. Requires the purchase of advertising in national media outlets to promote awareness of the VetSuccess website to veterans. Provides for outreach to veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom to inform them of the VetSuccess website.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act - Repeals certain provisions which require the offset of amounts paid in dependency and indemnity compensation from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for the surviving spouses of former military personnel who are entitled to military retired pay or who would be entitled to retired pay except for being under 60 years of age. Prohibits requiring repayment of certain amounts previously paid to SBP recipients in the form of a retired pay refund. Repeals the optional authority of (and instead requires) the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay an annuity to a member's dependent children when there is no eligible surviving spouse. Directs the Secretary concerned to restore annuity eligibility to a surviving spouse who earlier agreed to transfer such eligibility to a surviving child or children of a member.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
National Guardsmen and Reservists Parity for Patriots Act - Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 to back-date to September 11, 2001, the period of active duty or performed active service, in support of a contingency operation or in other emergency situations, for which members of Ready Reserve components of the armed forces shall receive credit in determining eligibility for early receipt of non-regular service retired pay.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Extends through 2013 eligibility for the concurrent receipt of military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation for veterans who were retired or separated due to physical disability, regardless of their disability rating or years of service.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Veterans Dog Training Therapy Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program for assessing the effectiveness of addressing post-deployment mental health and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms through a therapeutic medium of service dog training and handling for veterans with disabilities. Requires such program to be carried out at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers that can provide training areas for such purposes.

Date: 2011-01-06
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of 2011 - Deems certain service performed before July 1, 1946, in the organized military forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts as active military service for purposes of eligibility for veterans' benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in determining eligibility under this Act, to take into account any relevant service documentation, including documentation other than the Missouri List (the list of all discharged and deceased veterans from the 20th century).

Date: 2011-01-06
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Retiree Health Care Relief Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a refundable tax credit for premiums paid to enroll military retirees and their spouses and surviving spouses for supplementary medical insurance under part B of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act.

Date: 2011-01-07
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Taxation
Requires (current law authorizes) a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) contracting officer to award contracts to small businesses owned and controlled by veterans using other than competitive procedures for contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold in order to meet VA small business procurement contracting goals.

Date: 2011-01-07
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Retired Pay Restoration Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that military retired pay should not be reduced because a military retiree is also eligible for veterans' disability compensation awarded for a service-connected disability. Allows the receipt of both military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation with respect to any service-connected disability (under current law, only a disability rated at 50% or more). Repeals provisions phasing in the full concurrent receipt of such pay through December 31, 2013. Makes eligible for the full concurrent receipt of both veterans' disability compensation and either military retired pay or combat-related special pay those individuals who were retired or separated from military service due to a service-connected disability.

Date: 2011-01-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Samuel B. Moody Bataan Death March Compensation Act - Directs the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay certain compensation to individuals (or their survivors) who, as members of the Armed Forces during World War II: (1) were captured on the peninsula of Bataan or the island of Corregidor in the Philippines by Japanese forces; and (2) participated in and survived the Bataan Death March. Allows a survivor payment to be made to the nearest surviving relative of such individual.

Date: 2011-01-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Veterans Day Off Act - Entitles veterans who have been employed by an employer for at least 12 months, except those employed by a public agency, to leave from such employer on Veterans Day upon request if such veteran would otherwise be required to work on Veterans Day. Authorizes employers who employ 50 or more employees to deny leave if providing leave to veterans would negatively impact public health or safety or cause the employer significant economic or operational disruption. Authorizes leave granted to consist of unpaid leave. Authorizes an employee to elect, or an employer to require the employee, to substitute accrued paid vacation leave or personal leave for leave provided under this Act. Prohibits: (1) such employers from interfering with, restraining, or denying the taking of any leave provided under this Act; (2) such employers from discharging or discriminating against individuals for opposing practices made unlawful by this Act; and (3) any person from discharging or discriminating against individuals for filing any charge or instituting any proceeding under this Act, giving any information in connection with inquiries or proceedings relating to such leave, or testifying in inquiries or proceedings related to such leave. Gives the Secretary of Labor investigative authority with respect to the provisions of this Act in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions as the investigative authority provided under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. Requires such employers to post in conspicuous places on their premises a notice with information pertaining to the filing of a charge under this Act.

Date: 2011-01-19
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Disabled Veterans Tax Termination Act - Amends federal military retired pay provisions to: (1) permit veterans with a service-connected disability of less than 50% to concurrently receive both retired pay and disability compensation; (2) eliminate provisions requiring a phase in between January 1, 2004, and December 31, 2013, of concurrent receipt of retired pay and disability compensation; (3) eliminate the four-year phase-in of concurrent receipt of retired pay and disability compensation for disabled veterans determined to be individually unemployable; and (4) require a limited reduction in retired pay for combat-related disability retirees with less than 20 years of retirement-creditable service.

Date: 2011-01-19
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Restore Military Readiness Act of 2011 - Amends the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 to require, as an additional condition on the repeal of the current Department of Defense (DOD) policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces, that the chief of each military department certify to the congressional defense committees that such repeal will not degrade the readiness, effectiveness, cohesion, and morale of combat arms units and personnel under their respective commands that are engaged in combat, deployed to a combat theater, or preparing for deployment to a combat theater.

Date: 2011-01-19
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Detainee Trials at Gitmo Act - Provides that: (1) the detention facility at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, shall remain in use indefinitely by the United States as a detention facility; and (2) any individual who is detained at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, may only be tried by military commission which shall be conducted at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Date: 2011-01-20
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Battlefield Excellence through Superior Training Practices Act or BEST Practices Act - Requires the Secretary of Defense (DOD), no later than October 1, 2014, to only use human-based training methods for training members of the Armed Forces in the treatment of combat trauma injuries and the management of chemical and biological casualties. Prohibits the use of animals in such training.

Date: 2011-01-24
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Retiree Survivor Comfort Act - Requires the United States to forgive any overpayment of military retired or retainer pay for any period after the death of the recipient through the last day of the month in which such death occurs, if such payment is electronically deposited to a joint account bearing the name of the decedent and the decedent's designated beneficiary. Provides a special effective date for the first annuity payment to a survivor under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) when an overpayment is so forgiven.

Date: 2011-01-26
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Families Financial Preparedness Act - Requires the following information to be included as part of preseparation counseling provided to members of the Armed Forces and their spouses: (1) survivor benefits available through the Secretary of Defense (DOD) or Veterans Affairs (VA); (2) budgeting, saving, credit, loans, and taxes; (3) home loan services and housing assistance available through DOD or the VA and counseling on responsible borrowing practices; and (4) additional counseling regarding the member's actual entitlement to benefits and how to apply for such benefits.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Providing Military Honors for our Nation's Heroes Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reimburse a member of a veterans' service organization or other organization approved by the Secretary for transportation and other appropriate expenses incurred in connection with the voluntary provision of a funeral honors detail at the funeral of a veteran, including when requested by a funeral home.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Veterans Employment Tax Credit Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through 2014 the work opportunity tax credit for qualified veterans (defined as veterans who are members of families receiving supplemental nutrition assistance or who are entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability), and (2) make unemployed veterans who begin work for an employer during the period 2009 through 2014 eligible for such credit.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Taxation
Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 to extend the period for the submission by members of the Armed Forces of claims for retroactive stop-loss special pay (paid to members whose enlistment or period of obligated service was extended, or whose eligibility for retirement was suspended, by the President in time or war or national emergency) from one to two years after the date on which implementing rules for such payments take effect. Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to include in a required report concerning such payments a plan describing DOD outreach and informational efforts to promote and increase awareness of the special pay.

Date: 2011-02-09
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Expresses the sense of Congress that at a military funeral, memorial service, or wreath laying, the musical piece known as "Taps" should be sounded by a live solo bugler or trumpeter when possible. Designates Taps as the National Song of Remembrance. Provides for the appropriate conduct of military and non-military persons present during the playing of Taps. Provides an exception to such conduct when Taps is sounded as the final call of the day at a military base.

Date: 2011-02-09
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
National Emergency Selective Service Act of 2011 - Deauthorizes the Military Selective Service Act (requiring registration under the Selective Service System [System] for possible military induction) except during a period of national emergency declared by the President. Provides for the suspension of local military selection boards, appeal boards, and other selective service system agencies and activities during non-emergency periods. Requires the Secretary of Defense (DOD), when System operations are suspended, to assume responsibility for the security of System databases. Suspends sanctions against persons failing to register under the System, unless such failure occurs during a national emergency. Allows for the authorization of appropriations under the Military Selective Service Act only during periods of national emergency.

Date: 2011-02-10
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Fort Hood Victims and Families Benefits Protection Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) any member of the Armed Forces who was killed or wounded in the attack at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009, and the family members of those victims, should receive the same treatment and benefits as the victims and families of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States; (2) such members and families have made tremendous sacrifices, and the United States should provide them with the maximum level of benefits available, identical to that available to those killed or wounded in an overseas combat zone such as Iraq or Afghanistan; and (3) the Department of Defense (DOD) should honor the Americans killed or injured in such attack with awards that recognize their sacrifices, including the Purple Heart for members and the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom for civilian DOD employees. Treats members and DOD civilian employees killed or wounded in the shootings at Fort Hood, Texas, as members killed or wounded in a combat zone or civilian employees killed or wounded in a terrorist attack or while serving in a contingency operation, respectively, for purposes of specified laws, regulations, and policies concerning compensation, awards, and other benefits for which such members and employees are eligible.

Date: 2011-02-10
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Allows members of the Armed Forces not in uniform and veterans to render the military salute during the recitation of the pledge of allegiance.

Date: 2011-02-10
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Military Spouses Employment Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include spouses of members of the Armed Forces on extended active duty (more than 90 days or for an indefinite period) as members of a targeted group for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit (thus giving employers a tax incentive for hiring military spouses).

Date: 2011-02-14
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Taxation
Hire A Hero Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small business employers a work opportunity tax credit for hiring a member of the Ready Reserve or the National Guard.

Date: 2011-02-16
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Taxation
Seniors Financial Fraud Prevention Act of 2011 - Establishes a separate office within the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for the prevention of fraud targeting seniors and requires the office to assist the FTC in monitoring the market for mail, telemarketing, television, and Internet fraud which targets seniors. Requires the FTC through such office: (1) to disseminate to seniors and their families and caregivers information on mail, telemarketing, television, and Internet fraud targeting seniors, including on ways of referring complaints to appropriate law enforcement agencies; (2) in response to a request about a particular entity or individual, to provide publicly available information on any record of civil or criminal law enforcement action for such fraud; and (3) to maintain a website as a resource for such individuals on those kinds of fraud. Requires the FTC, through such office, to establish procedures to: (1) log and acknowledge complaints from individuals who certify that they believe they have been victims of mail, telemarketing, television, or Internet fraud; (2) provide certain information on those kinds of fraud; and (3) refer such complaints to appropriate entities, including state consumer protection agencies and entities and appropriate law enforcement agencies, for potential law enforcement action.

Date: 2011-02-17
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Commerce
Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2011 - Extends federal recognition to the following Indian tribes of Virginia and establishes their relationship with the federal government as described below: (1) the Chickahominy Tribe, (2) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe--Eastern Division, (3) the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, (4) the Rappahannock Tribe, Inc., (5) the Monacan Indian Nation, and (6) the Nansemond Indian Tribe. Makes the tribes and their members eligible for all services and benefits provided by the federal government to federally recognized Indian tribes. Establishes the service area of each tribe and requirements for each tribe regarding its membership roll, governing documents, and governing body. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, on request of any of the tribes, to take specified lands into trust for the benefit of that tribe, to be considered part of that tribe's reservation. Prohibits the tribes from conducting gaming activities. Prohibits this Act from affecting the hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or water rights of the tribes and their members. Requires Virginia to exercise jurisdiction over all criminal offenses committed, and all civil actions arising, on lands in Virginia owned by, or held in trust by the United States for, the tribes. Authorizes the Secretary to accept all or any portion of Virginia's jurisdiction over such offenses and actions on verification by the Secretary of a tribe's certification that the tribe possesses the capacity to reassume such jurisdiction. Prohibits the use of eminent domain to acquire lands in fee or in trust for an Indian tribe recognized under this Act.

Date: 2011-02-17
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Native Americans
Small-Scale Hydropower Enhancement Act of 2011 - Exempts from certain Federal Power Act licensing requirements a hydroelectric project that uses only a non-federally owned conduit to generate electric power under 1.5 megawatts. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to revise and update the study and report on the potential for increasing electric power production capability at federally owned or operated water regulation, storage, and conveyance facilities required by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Requires the study to include: (1) facilities that would result in less than 1 megawatt of capacity; and (2) information regarding the availability and importance of using materials and equipment produced and manufactured in the United States in the facilities referred to in the report. Directs the Secretary to: (1) consult, to the maximum extent practicable, with nonfederal and noncontracting interests in carrying out this study; and (2) carry it out on a nonreimbursable basis.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Energy
Equity for Injured Veterans Act of 2011 - Extends the period of eligibility for training and rehabilitation through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for veterans with service-connected disabilities until the end of the 15 (under current law, 12) year period after the veteran's discharge from active-duty service. Allows a service-disabled veteran a subsistence allowance for six (under current law, two) months of full-time employment training following completion of a vocational rehabilitation program. Allows such a veteran who has unused VA educational assistance entitlement to use such assistance to pursue a program of education as part of a vocational rehabilitation program, as long as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs approves the educational, professional, or vocational objective chosen by the veteran. Directs the Secretary to provide reimbursement for the actual cost of child care provided by a licensed provider to a veteran who is participating in a vocational rehabilitation program, is the sole caretaker of a child, and would not otherwise be able to afford such care. Requires the Secretary to include in annual budget materials submitted to Congress information on veterans receiving vocational rehabilitation assistance who: (1) became employed, and (2) achieved independence in daily living.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that an Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights is printed on signage in accessible formats and displayed prominently and conspicuously in each Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) prosthetics and orthotics clinic. Requires VA employees who work at such clinics, as well as patient advocates of veterans who receive care there, to receive training on such Bill of Rights. Directs the Secretary to conduct outreach to inform veterans of such Bill of Rights. Includes in the Bill of Rights the right to: (1) access the highest quality prosthetic and orthotic care; (2) select the practitioner that best meets their prosthetic and orthotic needs; (3) timely and efficient prosthetic and orthotic care; and (4) transition and readjust to civilian life in an honorable manner, including by having ample access to vocational rehabilitation, employment programs, and housing assistance. Directs: (1) the Secretary to collect information relating to the alleged mistreatment of injured and amputee veterans; (2) the veteran liaison at each VA medical center to submit quarterly to the VA's Chief Consultant of Prosthetics and Sensory Aids a report on such information; and (3) the Chief Consultant to investigate and address such information.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Prohibits collective bargaining with respect to matters and questions concerning rates of basic pay (under current law, concerning compensation) of employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). (Permits collective bargaining concerning compensation, other than basic rates of pay, with respect to such employees.)

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to ensure that the Women Veterans Bill of Rights is displayed prominently in each VA facility and distributed widely to such veterans. Enumerates health care rights to be included in the Bill of Rights, including the right to: (1) coordinated, comprehensive, primary women's health care at every VA medical facility; (2) treatment by clinicians with specific training and experience in women's health issues; and (3) gender equity in access to and the provision of clinical health care services.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Fair Access to Veterans Benefits Act of 2011 - Extends the 120-day limit for the filing of an appeal to the Court of Veterans Appeals after a final decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals upon a showing of good cause for such time as justice may require. Considers as good cause the inability of a person to file within the 120-day period due to a service-connected disability. Makes such extension applicable to appeals of final Board decisions issued on or after July 24, 2008.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Agent Orange Equity Act of 2011 - Includes as part of the Republic of Vietnam, for purposes of the presumption of service connection for diseases associated with exposure by veterans to certain herbicide agents while in Vietnam, such Republic's inland waterways, ports, harbors, waters offshore, and airspace. Includes as veterans eligible for such presumption those who: (1) served on Johnston Island during the period beginning on April 1, 1972, and ending on September 30, 1977; or (2) received the Vietnam Service Medal or the Vietnam Campaign Medal.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Allows veterans' disability compensation benefits to be paid to the survivor of a veteran whose service-connected disability was continuously rated totally disabling for at least one year immediately preceding death. (Current law allows such survivor right of payment if the disability was rated total for periods of up to ten years under various circumstances.)

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Justice for Public Servants Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to make the killing of a Member of Congress or an employee of Congress, or the killing or attempted killing of a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or other first responder, an aggravating factor in death penalty determinations.

Date: 2011-02-18
Topic: Defense (Personnel Issues)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement