zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
National Institute of Finance Act of 2010 - Establishes an independent National Institute of Finance (NIF) to support the federal financial regulatory agencies, including any systemic risk council or agency established by Congress, by: (1) collecting and providing data; (2) standardizing the types and formats of data reported and collected; (3) performing applied research and essential long-term research; (4) developing tools for risk measurement and monitoring; and (5) making the results of its activities available to financial regulatory agencies. Requires the NIF Director to be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and the NIF to be funded through assessments on the financial entities required to report data to it. States that the Institute shall implement its programmatic responsibilities through: (1) the Federal Financial Data Center; and (2) the Federal Financial Research and Analysis Center.

Date: 2010-02-04
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Job Impact Analysis Act of 2010 - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require the Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to include in the statement submitted to an authorizing congressional committee for a public bill or joint resolution reported by that committee for which estimated direct costs of all federal intergovernmental mandates, or all federal private sector mandates, will equal or exceed $5 billion (adjusted annually for inflation) estimates of the potential job creation or job loss in state, local, and tribal governments, or in the private sector, as a result of such mandates. Amends the Regulatory Flexibility Act to require: (1) each initial regulatory flexibility analysis to contain a detailed statement estimating the additional cumulative economic impact of the proposed rule on small businesses; (2) an agency to notify the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA) of any draft rules that may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses; (3) each final regulatory flexibility analysis to include the agency's response to any comments filed by the Chief Counsel in response to the proposed rule; and (4) the agency to publish the final regulatory flexibility analysis on its website. Requires each agency: (1) to place on its website its plan for the periodic review of rules, providing for the review of all agency rules at specified intervals; and (2) in reviewing the rules, to consider specified factors, including the continued need for the rule, the nature of complaints received, and the rule's complexity and current impact. Requires: (1) the Office of Advocacy of the SBA to carry out responsibilities concerning the analysis of regulatory functions; (2) each federal budget to include a separate statement of the amount requested for the Office, designated in a separate account in the General Fund of the Treasury; and (3) the SBA Administrator to provide the Office with appropriate office space and necessary equipment, operating budget, communications, and maintenance services.

Date: 2010-02-23
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Reduce Bureaucracy Act - Directs the President, acting through the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), to take such actions as necessary to ensure that the total number of political appointees shall not exceed 2,000. Defines "political appointee" to mean any individual who: (1) is employed in specified positions at Levels I through V of the Executive Schedule; (2) is a limited term appointee, limited emergency appointee, or noncareer appointee in the senior executive service; or (3) is employed in a position in the executive branch of a confidential or policy-determining character.

Date: 2010-03-08
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
International Cyberspace and Cybersecurity Coordination Act of 2010 - Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to establish within the office of the Secretary of State a Coordinator for Cyberspace and Cybersecurity Issues who shall: (1) be the principal official within senior Department management responsible for cyberspace and cybersecurity issues; (2) provide strategic direction and coordination for U.S. policy and programs addressing cyberspace and cybersecurity issues overseas; (3) coordinate with relevant federal departments and agencies and the intelligence community to develop interagency cyberspace and cybersecurity plans; and (4) build multilateral cooperation to develop international policies and responses to secure the integrity of cyberspace. Urges the Secretary to designate an employee to have primary responsibility for matters relating to cyberspace and cybersecurity policy in each country or region that is significant to U.S. cybersecurity efforts.

Date: 2010-04-12
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: International affairs
Directs the Comptroller General to carry out a study on the participation of small business concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, minority business enterprises, and women in procurement contracts awarded using funds made available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), including evaluating whether federal agencies have met the government-wide goals established under the Small Business Act for procurement contracts awarded to small business concerns.

Date: 2010-05-26
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Stop Cozy Relationships with Big Oil Act of 2010 - Prohibits an employee of the Minerals Management Service (Service) of the Department of the Interior, or a successor agency, from: (1) knowingly accepting a gift from an entity engaged in the business of mineral mining; (2) owning stock or any other interest in an entity engaged in the business of mineral mining during such employee's employment by the Service; (3) being employed (outside employment) by an entity engaged in the business of mineral mining during such employee's employment in the Service; or (4) working for an entity engaged in the business of mineral mining during the two-year period beginning on the date of termination of employment by the Service. Requires financial disclosure by employees of the Service in positions equivalent to GS-13 or higher. Prescribes criminal penalties for violations of these prohibitions. Amends federal criminal law to subject to fine or imprisonment any officer, employee, or agent of the Service who knowingly and willfully makes a materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation in the conduct of activities relating to oil and gas regulation.

Date: 2010-05-26
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Energy
Clean Up Earmarks Act of 2010 or CUE Act of 2010 - Requires the Comptroller General to submit an audit to Congress of 5% of Senate earmarks for the current fiscal year chosen at random. Requires the audit to include: (1) an adequate number of earmarks of small and large programs; (2) 50% of earmarks that have been requested by at least one Democratic Senator and one Republican Senator, respectively; and (3) 50% of earmarks requested by members and 50% of those requested by non-members, respectively, of the Senate Committee on Appropriations. Amends Rule XLIV (Congressional Directed Spending and Related Items) of the Standing Rules of the Senate to require an affirmative vote of two-thirds (currently, three-fifths [60]) of the Members of the Senate to: (1) authorize a Senator to move to waive any or all points of order with respect to a pending conference report that constitutes new directed spending provisions; and (2) sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair regarding such point of order. Requires the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives to take necessary steps to improve the website earmarks.gov to: (1) make earmarks more easily searchable by the requesting Member of Congress and by any federally registered lobbyist who requested them; and (2) ensure that the website is user friendly and does not include extraneous information. Expresses the sense of the Senate that the subcommittees of the Committee should hold separate hearings on earmark requests in excess of $1 million and of $5 million, respectively, during which Members who requested them should be invited to testify. Amends Rule XLIV to require all congressionally directed spending items to be included in the text of an appropriations or authorization bill and any related conference report. Requires each request by a Senator for a congressionally directed spending item for such a bill to be posted on the Senator's website within 48 hours, including specified related information. Makes it out of order to consider an appropriations or authorization bill, amendment, or conference report if it contains a congressionally directed spending item for a private for-profit entity. Requires a Senator to: (1) require any eligible entity that requests an earmark submission from the Senator to include a written disclosure in that earmark request of the identity of any for-profit, private company that might directly benefit financially from the award of the earmark; and (2) submit the disclosed beneficiary identity in writing to the Committee with any corresponding earmarks request made by the Senator, and include the beneficiary disclosure in the disclosure of earmarks required to be posted on the Senator's website. Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to require reports by registered lobbyists to include, for each client, the amount of congressional earmarks requested from Congress on the client's behalf and a detailed accounting of each such earmark.

Date: 2010-06-10
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Congress
National Manufacturing Strategy Act of 2010 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the U.S. government should promote policies related to the nation's manufacturing sector intended to promote growth, sustainability, and competitiveness, create well-paying jobs, enable innovation and investment, and support national security; and (2) the President and Congress should act promptly to pursue policies consistent with a National Manufacturing Strategy (Strategy). Directs the President, every four years, to submit to Congress, and publish on a public website, a Strategy. Requires the first Strategy to be submitted within one year after enactment of this Act. Directs the President to establish, within the Department of Commerce, the President's Manufacturing Strategy Board to: (1) advise the President and Congress on issues concerning the manufacturing sector; (2) conduct a comprehensive analysis of such sector; (3) develop a Strategy; and (4) report annually to the President and Congress on the current state of U.S. manufacturing. Directs the Comptroller General, in each of 2013, 2017, and 2021, to submit to Congress an assessment and analysis of the Strategy. Directs the President to enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to conduct a study concerning U.S. manufacturing and related assessments and reviews. Requires the NAS to report each study's results to Congress and the President. Requires the President, in each annual budget, to include information regarding that budget's consistency with the goals and recommendations included in the latest Strategy.

Date: 2010-07-28
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Commerce
Strengthening Community Safety Act of 2010 - Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to authorize the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make a grant to an eligible first responder agency for the additional costs incurred as a direct result of one or more of its employees who are reservists being placed on active duty. Defines "eligible first responder agency" as one for which the cost of operating has increased by not less than 5% as a direct result of such employees being placed on active duty. Prohibits the Administrator from making a grant for costs relating to an employee being placed on active duty if federal funds are used for that employee's pay or benefits. Authorizes the use of grant funds for: (1) pay or benefits for an individual hired to replace such an employee; (2) overtime expenses for an individual who performs tasks that would have been performed by such an employee; and (3) the cost of equipment, maintenance, or other activities the agency was unable to acquire or perform because of the cost of replacing such an employee or the need for which was caused by an employee being placed on active duty. Limits the grant period to six months.

Date: 2010-08-05
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Emergency management
Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to provide that no permit shall be required for: (1) the use of a pesticide that is registered or otherwise authorized for use under such Act; (2) the use of a biological control organism for the prevention, control, or eradication of a plant pest or noxious weed that is in accordance with the Plant Protection Act; or (3) the conduct of any other plant pest, noxious weed, or pest control activity conducted in accordance with the Plant Protection Act.

Date: 2010-08-05
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Agriculture and food
Renewable Electricity Promotion Act of 2010 - Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) to establish a standard that requires electric utilities to obtain an increasing percentage of their base quantity of electricity that they sell to consumers from renewable energy or energy efficiency (3% in 2012-2013, 6% in 2014-2016, 9% in 2017-2018, 12% in 2019-2020, and 15% in 2021-2039). Requires the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to establish a renewable energy credit trading program and an energy efficiency credit trading program, under which utilities will submit credits to comply with such standard. Provides for the issuance, duration, transfer, trading, tracking, and reporting of credits. Sets forth civil penalties for utilities that fail to meet such requirements. Allows the Secretary to delegate to: (1) a market-making entity the administration of a national renewable energy credit market and a national energy efficiency credit market to create a transparent national market for the sale or trade of such credits, and (2) regional entities the tracking of dispatch of renewable energy generation;. Authorizes: (1) a state public utility commission or electric utility to request a variance from such renewable energy and energy efficiency requirements, and (2) a utility to meet such requirements by submitting alternative compliance payments. Allows: (1) a governor to expend amounts in a state renewable energy escrow account solely for increasing the quantity of electric energy produced from a renewable energy source in the state, promoting deployment and use of electric drive vehicles in the state, and offsetting the costs of carrying out this Act paid by consumers in the state through direct grants to electric consumers or energy efficiency investments; and (2) states to adopt or enforce laws concerning renewable energy or energy efficiency or the regulation of electric utilities. Exempts from renewable energy and energy efficiency requirements an electric utility that sold less than 4 million megawatt hours of electric energy to electric consumers during the preceding year or that is located in Hawaii. Requires the Secretary, when petitioned by the governor of a state or the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in the case of TVA's power service area, to allow up to 26.67% of the renewable energy and energy efficiency requirements associated with the sales of electricity of a utility to be met by submitting federal energy efficiency credits. Requires: (1) the Secretary to promulgate regulations regarding the measurement and verification of electricity savings; and (2) the increment of electricity output of a new combined heat and power system that is attributable to the higher efficiency of the combined system to be considered electricity savings. Requires the Secretary to make loans available to electric utilities to: (1) construct a renewable energy generation facility; and (2) install an energy efficiency or electricity demand reduction technology. Terminates the authority provided by this Act on December 31, 2039.

Date: 2010-09-21
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Energy
Earmark Reform and Federal Spending Transparency and Accountability Act of 2011 - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit, between January 1 of an odd-numbered year and December 31 of the next even-numbered year, an earmark beneficiary from making contributions aggregating more than $5,000 to any requesting candidate with respect to such earmark beneficiary. Defines "requesting candidate" as any Senator or Member who requested a congressionally directed spending item, limited tax benefit, or limited tariff benefit (earmark) which benefits the earmark beneficiary. Prohibits the employees of the personal staff of a Member of Congress, except for one designee, from attending a political fund raiser held on the Member's behalf. Requires the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives each to post on the respective public website a link to the earmark database maintained by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Requires the head of each federal department and agency to post on the respective public website a link to a searchable database that lists each contract, grant, cooperative agreement, and other expenditure made by the department or agency. Amends Rule XLIV (Congressionally Directed Spending and Related Items) of the Standing Rules of the Senate to require a Senator requesting an earmark in any legislation or an accompanying joint statement of managers to certify in the required written statement to the chairman and ranking member of the committee of jurisdiction that the earmark recipient is qualified to handle the project. Requires the Comptroller General, in an annual report to Congress, to use the OMB database to: (1) randomly select a percentage of each of the programs and projects funded through earmarks in the preceding fiscal year; (2) audit each selected one; and (3) provide a detailed accounting of how, if it does so, the earmark contributes to an already existing program or project.

Date: 2010-11-15
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Congress
Spending Control Act of 2010 - Establishes the Grace Commission II to conduct a review of cost control in the federal government every two years with respect to improving management and reducing costs. Directs the Commission to conduct in-depth studies to evaluate potential improvements in the operations of executive agencies and to develop recommendations regarding: (1) opportunities for increased efficiency and reduced costs that can be realized by executive action or legislation; (2) areas where managerial accountability can be enhanced and administrative control can be improved; (3) opportunities for managerial improvements over the short and long terms; (4) specific areas where further study can be justified by potential savings; and (5) ways to reduce governmental expenditures and indebtedness and improve personnel management. Requires the Commission to submit final reports within 18 months after enactment of this Act and every two years thereafter until it submits its third final report. Requires such reports to contain the Commission's findings, conclusions, and recommendations for legislative and administrative actions and proposed legislation to carry out those recommendations. Sets forth congressional procedures for considering such legislation.

Date: 2010-11-30
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Espionage Statutes Modernization Act of 2010 - Amends the federal criminal code to impose a fine and/or prison term of up to five years on a covered individual who intentionally discloses, delivers, communicates, or transmits classified information, without authorization, knowing or having reason to know that such action is a violation of the terms of the classified information nondisclosure agreement entered into by such individual.  Defines "covered individual" as an officer, employee, contractor, or consultant of a federal agency who agrees to be legally bound by the terms of a classified information nondisclosure agreement.  Exempts from such prohibition disclosures made in accordance with a federal whistleblower protection statute or regulation. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review and, if appropriate, amend federal sentencing guidelines and policy statements applicable to a person convicted of an offense under this Act.

Date: 2010-12-21
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Sunset All Czars Act - Prohibits the use of appropriated funds to pay for any salaries or expenses of any task force, council, policy office within the Executive Office of the President, or similar office that is established by or at the direction of the President and is headed by a Czar. Defines "Czar" as the head of any such office who: (1) is appointed to such position (other than on an interim basis) without the advice and consent of the Senate, (2) is excepted from the competitive service, (3) performs or delegates functions which would be performed or delegated by an individual appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate if not for the establishment of such task force or office, and (4) does not have an existing removal date.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Government Reform Act of 2011 - Establishes a Government Reform Commission to: (1) examine the current configuration of executive agencies and investigate their duties and responsibilities; (2) review agency operational jurisdictions to determine whether areas of overlap exist and whether the mission of any agency has become obsolete; (3) review and report to the President and Congress on existing Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congressional Budget Office (CBO), and Inspector General reports, together with any other existing governmental and nongovernmental recommendations, including those offered by the President's Private Sector Survey on Cost Control, for reducing waste in executive agencies; (4) submit to the President and Congress a proposed reorganization plan which shall provide for the realignment or closure of executive agencies to reduce duplication of services and increase productivity; and (5) transmit a copy of the plan to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), who shall issue a public report detailing the predicted savings in federal expenditures that would result from implementing such plan. Sets forth separate provisions for presidential and congressional consideration of and actions on the proposed reorganization plan.

Date: 2011-01-05
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Reducing Information Control Designations Act - Requires each federal agency to reduce and minimize its use of information control designations on information that is not classified. Defines such designations to mean information dissemination controls that are not defined by federal statute or executive order relating to the classification of national security information and that are used to manage, direct, or route information or to control the accessibility of information, regardless of its form or format. Requires the Archivist of the United States to promulgate regulations to address: (1) standards for the use of such designations to maximize public access to information; (2) the process for removing such designations; (3) procedures for identifying and tracking designated information; (4) provisions to minimize the use of such designations to prevent misuse and interference with competition in the private sector; and (5) a process for individuals and the public to challenge the use of such designations. Requires the head of each federal agency to: (1) implement the regulations promulgated by the Archivist to encourage information sharing; and (2) ensure that such designations do not determine public disclosure requirements under the Freedom of Information Act. Requires the Inspector General of each federal agency to randomly audit and report to Congress on unclassified information with such designations to determine compliance. Directs the Archivist to: (1) require personal identifiers and agency affiliations of individuals applying such designations: (2) require training of such individuals; and (3) implement a program to detail federal employees to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to train such employees. Terminates such detail program on December 31, 2014.

Date: 2011-01-06
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Regulation Audit Revive Economy Act of 2011 or the RARE Act of 2011 - Imposes a moratorium on federal agencies taking any regulatory rulemaking action beginning 30 days after the enactment of this Act and ending on the later of 14 days after the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) publishes a report on a review of rules, as defined by this Act, or 2 years after the enactment of this Act. Allows exceptions for rulemaking necessary because of an imminent threat to health or safety or other emergency, for the enforcement of criminal laws, or to establish or enforce statutory rights against discrimination.

Date: 2011-01-07
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Territorial Funding Information Act of 2011 - Requires the head of each federal agency to report to the Comptroller General annually describing federal funds distributed by such agency for the preceding fiscal year, through grant or formula programs or otherwise, to each of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands (territories), each state, and the District of Columbia. Prohibits the distribution of such funds unless in such distribution each of the territories is treated in the same manner as each of the states and the District of Columbia, unless a disparate treatment is authorized by federal law or consented to, in writing, by the chief executive officer of a territory.

Date: 2011-01-07
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Economics and public finance
Full Faith and Credit Act - Requires the authority of the Department of the Treasury to pay the principal and interest on debt held by the public to take priority over all other obligations incurred by the government in the event the federal debt reaches the statutory limit.

Date: 2011-01-25
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Economics and public finance
Government Customer Service Improvement Act - Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to: (1) develop performance measures to determine whether federal agencies are providing high-quality customer service and improving delivery service to their customers, (2) develop standards to be met by agencies to provide high-quality customer service and improve service delivery, and (3) include achievements in meeting customer service performance measures and standards in agency performance updates. Requires each federal agency to: (1) collect information from its customers regarding the quality of its customer services, (2) include this information in its performance report to the President and Congress, and (3) designate an employee as the agency's customer relations representative to be responsible for implementing customer service standards. Provides that employee compliance with agency customer service standards shall be measured in employee performance appraisals. Authorizes the President to exempt an agency from the application of this Act for national security reasons. Requires: (1) any savings or reductions in expenditures resulting from this Act to be used to offset the cost of implementing this Act, and (2) any additional savings to be used to reduce the deficit.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Federal Program Sunset Commission Act - Establishes the Federal Program Sunset Commission to evaluate the efficiency and public need for each federal program using specified criteria. Requires the Commission to: (1) submit to Congress and the President an annual report containing a list of federal programs that the Commission recommends to be abolished or reorganized and draft legislation to carry out the Commission's recommendations, and (2) monitor the implementation of laws relating to its recommendations for the abolishment or reorganization of such programs. Requires that all federal programs the Commission recommends for abolishment be abolished, unless reauthorized by Congress. Requires the Comptroller General and the Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in consultation with the Director of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), to prepare an annual inventory of programs within each federal agency to advise and assist Congress and the Commission in carrying out this Act.

Date: 2011-02-10
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Judicial Transparency and Ethics Enhancement Act of 2011 - Amends the federal judicial code to establish the Office of Inspector General for the Judicial Branch of the U.S. government, to be headed by an Inspector General appointed by the Chief Justice. Sets a term of four years, which may be extended by additional reappointments. Authorizes the Chief Justice to remove an Inspector General from office. Requires the Office, except with respect to the Supreme Court, to: (1) conduct investigations of alleged misconduct in the Judicial Branch; (2) conduct and supervise audits and investigations; and (3) prevent and detect waste, fraud, and abuse. Provides for whistleblower protection.

Date: 2011-02-15
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Law
Responsible End to the War in Afghanistan Act - States that it is the policy of the United States to ensure that funds made available for operations of the Armed Forces in Afghanistan are to be used only for providing for the safe and orderly withdrawal of all U.S. military personnel and Department of Defense (DOD) contractor personnel in Afghanistan. Allows such funds to be obligated and expended only for such purpose.

Date: 2011-02-17
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Federal Agency Transparency Act - Requires each federal agency, at the end of each two-week period, to publish on its official website a statement of all funds received and spent during such period.

Date: 2011-03-14
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Federal Reserve Board Abolition Act - Abolishes the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and each federal reserve bank.Repeals the Federal Reserve Act.

Date: 2011-03-15
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Decrease Spending Now Act - Rescinds $45 billion of unobligated balances of current discretionary appropriations. Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to: (1) determine which appropriation accounts the rescission shall apply to and the amount that each such account shall be reduced, and (2) report to the Secretary of the Treasury and Congress a list of the accounts reduced by the rescission, including the amounts rescinded from each such account. Exempts from such rescission the Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Social Security Administration (SSA).

Date: 2011-03-16
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Economics and public finance
National Language Act of 2011 - Makes English the official language of the U.S. government. Requires the government to: (1) conduct its official business in English, including publications, income tax forms, and informational materials; and (2) preserve and enhance the role of English as the official language of the United States. Provides that no person has a right, entitlement, or claim to have the government act, communicate, perform, or provide services or materials in any other language, unless specifically stated in applicable law. Provides that this Act is inapplicable to the use of a language other than English for religious purposes, for training in foreign languages for international communication, or in school programs designed to encourage students to learn foreign languages. Allows the U.S. government to provide interpreters for persons over age 62. Repeals provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 regarding bilingual election requirements and regarding congressional findings of voting discrimination against language minorities, prohibition of English-only elections, and other remedial measures. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to require that all public ceremonies in which the oath of allegiance is administered pursuant to such Act be conducted solely in English. Prohibits this Act from preempting any state law.

Date: 2011-03-17
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Reduces by 10% the amounts authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Defense (DOD) for FY2012 for printing and reproduction under Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and defense-wide operation and maintenance funds.

Date: 2011-03-29
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Chief Technology Officer Act - Establishes in the Executive Office of the President an Office of the Federal Chief Technology Officer (FCTO). Includes among the functions of the FCTO to: (1) analyze and advise the President and agency officials regarding the government's information technology infrastructures, strategy, and use; (2) ensure the security and privacy of the federal information technology infrastructure and networks; (3) promote technological innovation in the federal government; (4) establish public-private sector partnership initiatives; and (5) lead specified interagency efforts, including a planning process to ensure the use of best-in-class technologies, the sharing of best practices, and improvement in the use of technology in support of government requirements.Requires the Office to serve as a source of analysis and advice for the President and agency heads regarding major government policies, plans, and programs associated with information technology.Requires the FCTO to: (1) be a member of the Domestic Policy Council; and (2) publish an annual report on programs to promote technological innovations, recommendations for policies to encourage the generation of such innovations, and information on the Office's activities and accomplishments.

Date: 2011-03-30
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Declares Executive Order 13166, "Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency," to be null and void. Prohibits the use of funds for the promulgation or enforcement of an executive order that creates an entitlement to services provided in a language other than English.

Date: 2011-04-01
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Public Online Information Act of 2011 - Establishes a Public Online Information Advisory Committee to: (1) coordinate and encourage the government's efforts to make information from all three branches of government available on the Internet, and (2) issue and update nonbinding guidelines on how the government should make public information available. Directs the government to make public records available on the Internet at no charge, except as imposed by federal law before this Act's enactment. Requires: (1) public records to be permanently available on the Internet; (2) current information technology capabilities to be applied to the means by which records are made available and to the formats in which they are available; and (3) each agency to publish on the Internet a comprehensive, searchable, machine processable list of all records it makes publicly available. Delineates the roles of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Administrator of the Office of Electronic Government, and the chief information officers of independent regulatory agencies, including granting narrow case-by-case exceptions to the Internet publication requirement if an agency requests an exception and demonstrates that: (1) there is a clear and convincing reason for the record to not be made available on the Internet, and (2) on balance the harm caused by disclosure significantly outweighs the public's interest in having the record available on the Internet. Directs the Inspector General of each agency to conduct periodic reviews regarding agency compliance with Internet publication requirements. Sets forth provisions regarding enforcement of public access by private individuals or organizations. Urges: (1) judicial and legislative agencies to adopt or adapt the Advisory Committee's recommendations, and (2) the Government Printing Office (GPO) to make all of its publications permanently available on the Internet in a multiplicity of formats.

Date: 2011-04-04
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Accountability and Transparency Act of 2011 - Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to remove the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, an independent bureau in the Federal Reserve System, to the Department of the Treasury, where it would not be autonomous. Repeals the requirement of an annual transfer to the Bureau of funds from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Subjects the Bureau to the regular authorization, budget, and appropriations process of the Department of the Treasury. Repeals establishment of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Fund and of a Victims Relief Fund. Replaces the authorization of appropriations for FY2010-FY2014 with an authorization for only FY2011-FY2012.

Date: 2011-04-04
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Honest Services Restoration Act - Amends the federal criminal code to include as a fraud offense a scheme or artifice by a public official to engage in undisclosed self-dealing. Defines "undisclosed self-dealing" to mean: (1) performing an official act to benefit or further a financial interest of such public official, a spouse or minor child, a general business partner, a business or organization in which the public official is serving as an employee, officer, director, trustee, or general partner, or an individual, business, or organization with whom the public official is negotiating for, or has any arrangement concerning, prospective employment or financial compensation; and (2) knowingly falsifying, concealing, covering up, or failing to disclose material information regarding a financial interest as required by law.

Date: 2011-04-08
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Prevent the Reckless, Irresponsible, Needless Typography (PRINT) Act of 2011 - Revises requirements for printing the Congressional Record, specifying that it be made electronically available promptly as it is issued in daily form. Prohibits the Government Printing Office (GPO) from printing more than the minimum number of copies of the Record necessary for archival purposes. Requires the Public Printer to: (1) determine that minimum number of copies, and (2) ensure the most cost-effective printing of it. Requires GPO to make the Record publicly available on GPO's Web site in a format which enables it to be downloaded and printed by users. Repeals: (1) the authority of the Librarian of Congress to furnish a copy of the daily and bound Record to the Undersecretary of State for External Affairs of Canada in exchange for a copy of the Parliamentary Hansard, and (2) the Public Printer's requirement to honor the requisition. Repeals the authority of the Public Printer, under the direction of the Joint Committee, to sell: (1) subscriptions to the daily Record; and (2) current, individual numbers and bound sets of it.

Date: 2011-04-15
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Accountability Act - Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to subject the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection to regular appropriations. Repeals the requirement of an annual transfer to the Bureau of funds from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Subjects the Bureau to the regular authorization, budget, and appropriations process of the Department of the Treasury. Repeals establishment of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Fund. Replaces the authorization of appropriations for FY2010-FY2014 with an authorization for only FY2011-FY2012.

Date: 2011-04-15
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Transfer Clarification Act - Amends the the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to require the calendar date for the transfer of certain consumer financial protection functions from specified existing agencies to the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) to be the later of: (1) the date that would have been designated, but for application of this Act, and (2) the date on which the Director of the Bureau is confirmed by the Senate.

Date: 2011-05-02
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Multilingual Services Accounting Act - Requires federal agency Chief Financial Officers to include multilingual services accounting information in their mandatory annual reports to the agency head and to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Defines multilingual services to include: (1) services provided by interpreters hired by an agency; (2) services resulting in additional expenses which an agency provides to assist its employees or contractors to learn a non-English language; (3) agency preparation, translation, printing, or recordation of materials in a language other than English; and (4) services provided or performed for the federal government by agency employees or contractors that require speaking a non-English language that result in wage differentials or benefits provided by the agency. Requires the OMB Director's annual financial management status report to certain congressional committees to contain a Multilingual Services Expenses Report that includes: (1) a summary and analysis of the multilingual services accounting information prepared by each agency Chief Financial Officer, and (2) a description of any changes to the existing financial management structure of the federal government needed to establish an integrated individual agency accounting of all multilingual services conducted by each agency. Requires the OMB Director to issue guidance that an agency Chief Financial Officer must follow in compiling multilingual services accounting information.

Date: 2011-05-04
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), not later than 150 days after the enactment of this Act, to coordinate with the heads of federal agencies to: (1) use available administrative authority to eliminate, consolidate, or streamline federal programs and agencies with duplicative and overlapping missions as identified in the March 2011 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report entitled "Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue" and apply any savings towards deficit reduction; (2) report to Congress any legislative changes required to further eliminate, consolidate, or streamline such programs and agencies; (3) determine the total cost savings to each agency from the implementation of this Act; and (4) rescind from appropriate accounts the greater of $5 billion or the total amount of such cost savings.

Date: 2011-05-05
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Public Officials Accountability Act - Amends the federal criminal code to include as a fraud offense a scheme or artifice by a public official to engage in undisclosed self-dealing. Defines "undisclosed self-dealing" to mean: (1) performing an official act to benefit or further a financial interest of such public official, a spouse or minor child, a general business partner, a business or organization in which the public official is serving as an employee, officer, director, trustee, or general partner, or an individual, business, or organization with whom the public official is negotiating for, or has any arrangement concerning, prospective employment or financial compensation; and (2) knowingly falsifying, concealing, covering up, or failing to disclose material information regarding a financial interest as required by law.

Date: 2011-05-13
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Crime and law enforcement
Correction of Long-Standing Errors in Agencies' Unsustainable Procurements Act of 2011 or the CLEAN-UP Act - Requires executive agencies to ensure that: (1) inherently governmental functions, functions closely related to such functions, and mission-essential functions are performed by federal employees; (2) other functions are performed by the more efficient form of personnel, whether federal employees, contractors, or military personnel; and (3) consideration is given to using federal employees to perform new functions on a regular basis. Requires each agency head to submit to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): (1) an annual report on service contracts for new work, (2) a Functions At Risk Report that describes those functions required to be performed by federal employees that are actually performed by contractors (requires agencies to reduce the total number of contractor employees described in that Report by 70% within six years), and (3) a strategic human capital plan to ensure the capability of the agency's federal employee workforce to perform agency functions. Prohibits an agency from conducting a public-private competition for any function that such plan identifies as experiencing a gap in its federal employee workforce. Requires agencies subject to the Federal Activities Inventory Reform Act of 1998 (other than the Department of Defense [DOD]) to: (1) submit an annual inventory of activities performed pursuant to contracts for services, (2) review those contracts and identify activities that should be considered for conversion to performance by civilian employees, and (3) develop a plan for such conversion by June 30 of the following year. Authorizes agency heads to expedite the hiring of certain professionals in shortage category positions. Requires the OMB Director to: (1) develop guidelines for the establishment of business process re-engineering projects, and (2) conduct annual performance reviews of such projects that are ongoing. Sets forth revisions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to studies and public-private competitions for the conversion of agency functions to contractor performance pursuant to OMB Circular A-76.

Date: 2011-05-23
Topic: Government Operations (Bureaucracy)
Subject: Government operations and politics