Government Studies And Investigations
US Congress 115th Congress
Department of Homeland Security Clearance Management and Administration Act [HB-697]
Department of Homeland Security Clearance Management and Administration Act (Sec. 2) This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to require that the designation of the sensitivity level of national security positions be conducted in a consistent manner in all Department of Homeland Security (DHS) components and offices, consistent with federal guidelines. DHS must use uniform designation tools throughout DHS and provide training to appropriate staff. The bill requires DHS: (1) by July 6, 2017, and every five years thereafter, to review all
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Sponsored by: Rep. Bennie Thompson
Received In The Senate And Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs. on 02/01/2017
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Airport Perimeter and Access Control Security Act of 2017 [HB-665]
Airport Perimeter and Access Control Security Act of 2017 (Sec. 2) This bill directs the Transportation Security Administration to: update the Transportation Sector Security Rick Assessment for the aviation sector, update the Comprehensive Risk Assessment of Perimeter and Access Control Security for airports, conduct conduct a system-wide assessment of airport access control points and airport perimeter security, and update the 2012 National Strategy for Airport Perimeter and Access Control Security.
Sponsored by: Rep. Eric Swalwell
Received In The Senate And Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Commerce, Science, And Transportation. on 02/01/2017
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VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2017 [HB-611]
VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2017 This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to remove or demote a VA employee based on performance or misconduct. The VA may remove such individual from the civil service or demote the individual through a reduction in grade or annual pay rate. A demoted individual shall not be placed on administrative leave or any other category of paid leave during the appeals period and can receive pay only if he or she reports for duty. The bill: (1) establishes an expedited appeals
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Sponsored by: Rep. Ted Poe
Referred To The Subcommittee On Economic Opportunity. on 02/03/2017
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Head Start Improvement Act of 2017 [S.185]
Head Start Improvement Act of 2017 This bill amends the Head Start Act to replace the existing Head Start program with block grants to states and Indian tribes for prekindergarten (pre-K) education. Instead of providing direct financial assistance to Head Start agencies, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shall allot block grant funds for pre-K education among eligible states and Indian tribes in accordance with their relative proportions of children, age five and younger, from low-income households. Grant recipients shall use the
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Sponsored by: Sen. Mike Lee
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Health, Education, Labor, And Pensions. on 01/23/2017
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H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2017 [S.180]
H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2017 This bill amends the the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise employer and government requirements regarding visas for nonimmigrant aliens rated H-1B (specialty occupation) and L-1 (intracompany transfer to the United States from abroad). H-1B employer application requirements are revised. The bill establishes an H-1B visa allocation system, with first priority reserved for aliens who have earned an advanced degree in a field of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) from a U.S. institution
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Sponsored by: Sen. Chuck Grassley
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On The Judiciary. on 01/20/2017
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Bailout Prevention Act of 2017 [HB-595]
Bailout Prevention Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Reserve Act to declare a borrower ineligible to borrow from any emergency lending program or facility unless the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Board) and all federal banking regulators with jurisdiction over the borrower certify that, at the time the borrower initially borrows under the program or facility, the borrower is not insolvent. Solvency shall be assessed by examining the last four months of relevant financial data and determining whether the fair value
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Sponsored by: Rep. Michael Capuano
Introduced In House on 01/20/2017
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Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act [S.178]
Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act TITLE I--SUPPORTING FEDERAL CASES INVOLVING ELDER JUSTICE (Sec. 101) This bill establishes requirements for the Department of Justice (DOJ) with respect to investigating and prosecuting elder abuse crimes and enforcing elder abuse laws. Specifically, DOJ must: designate Elder Justice Coordinators in federal judicial districts and at DOJ, implement comprehensive training for Federal Bureau of Investigation agents, and establish a working group to provide policy advice. The Executive Office for United States
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Sponsored by: Sen. Robert Casey
Became Public Law No: 115-70. (txt | Pdf) on 10/18/2017
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A bill to ensure that certain Federal public works and infrastructure projects use materials produced in the United States, and for other purposes. [S.181]
A bill to ensure that certain Federal public works and infrastructure projects use materials produced in the United States, and for other purposes. This bill requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to publish a report that identifies all federal assistance programs for public works and infrastructure administered by the federal government. For each such program, GAO shall: (1) identify whether a domestic content preference requirement applies and, if so, provide preference details; and (2) describe the type of infrastructure projects
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Sponsored by: Sen. Rob Portman
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs. on 01/20/2017
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AIM Act of 2017 Airplane Impacts Mitigation Act of 2017 [HB-598]
AIM Act of 2017 Airplane Impacts Mitigation Act of 2017 This bill requires the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to enter into an agreement with an eligible institution of higher education to conduct a study of the health impacts of airplane flights on residents exposed to a range of noise and air pollution levels from such flights. The study shall: focus on residents in Boston, Chicago, New York, the northern California metroplex, Phoenix, and not more than three additional metropolitan areas that each contain at least one international airport;
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Sponsored by: Rep. Ted Lieu
Referred To The Subcommittee On Aviation. on 01/23/2017
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HELP for Coal Miners Health Care Act of 2017 Helping Ensure Long-Term Protection for Coal Miners Health Care Act of 2017 [S.176]
HELP for Coal Miners Health Care Act of 2017 Helping Ensure Long-Term Protection for Coal Miners Health Care Act of 2017 This bill amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) to transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan to provide health benefits to retired coal miners and their families. The bill expands the group whose retiree health benefits are taken into account in determining the amount that the Department of the Treasury must transfer from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund and the General
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Sponsored by: Sen. Lisa Murkowski
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Finance. (text Of Measure As Introduced: Cr S343-344) on 01/17/2017
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HUD Inspection Process and Enforcement Reform Act of 2017 [S.160]
HUD Inspection Process and Enforcement Reform Act of 2017 This bill allows the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to remove certain HUD employees from civil service or to reduce their grade or pay for misconduct or performance. HUD employees may challenge a removal or reduction in grade or pay by filing an appeal with the Merit Systems Protection Board. This bill amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to require an entity receiving section 8 housing assistance payments under a payment contract to: (1) maintain decent, safe,
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Sponsored by: Sen. Marco Rubio
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Banking, Housing, And Urban Affairs. on 01/17/2017
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Securing Access to Networks in Disasters Act [HB-588]
Securing Access to Networks in Disasters Act (Sec. 2) This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to submit to Congress and publish on the FCC website a study on the public safety benefits, technical feasibility, and cost of providing the public with access to 9-1-1 services during times of emergency when mobile service is unavailable, through: telecommunications service provider-owned WiFi access points and other communications technologies operating on unlicensed spectrum, without requiring any login credentials; non-telecommunications
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Sponsored by: Rep. Frank Pallone
Received In The Senate And Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Commerce, Science, And Transportation. on 01/24/2017
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VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2017 [S.152]
VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2017 This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to remove or demote a VA employee based on performance or misconduct. The VA may remove such individual from the civil service or demote the individual through a reduction in grade or annual pay rate. A demoted individual shall not be placed on administrative leave or any other category of paid leave during the appeals period and can receive pay only if he or she reports for duty. The bill: (1) establishes an expedited appeals
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Sponsored by: Sen. Chuck Grassley
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Veterans' Affairs. on 01/17/2017
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Terror Intelligence Improvement Act of 2017 [S.151]
Terror Intelligence Improvement Act of 2017 This bill requires each federal department or agency to provide to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) information about a person who is or has been under a federal terrorism investigation. The FBI and its Joint Terrorism Task Forces must immediately be notified of a request to transfer a firearm or explosive to a person who is, or was within the previous 10 years, under a federal terrorism investigation. The Inspector General of the Intelligence Community must audit the federal government's terrorism-related
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Sponsored by: Sen. Marco Rubio
Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On The Judiciary. on 01/17/2017
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Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2017 [HB-522]
Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act of 2017 This bill prohibits government officials from entering into or enforcing a settlement agreement resolving a civil action on behalf of the United States that provides for a payment to any person or entity other than the United States. The bill provides exceptions to allow payments that remedy actual harm (including to the environment) caused by the party making the payment or that constitute payment for services rendered in connection with the case. Government officials or agents who violate this prohibition
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Sponsored by: Rep. Mike Johnson
Referred To The Subcommittee On Regulatory Reform, Commercial And Antitrust Law. on 02/08/2017
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Social Impact Partnerships to Pay for Results Act [HB-576]
Social Impact Partnerships to Pay for Results Act This bill allows the Department of the Treasury to enter into agreements with state and local governments for social-impact partnership projects for which federal funds shall be awarded only if a project achieves certain agreed-upon outcomes resulting in both social benefit and federal, state, or local savings. In carrying out these agreements, Treasury must consult with the Federal Interagency Council on Social Impact Partnerships and the Commission on Social Impact Partnerships (both newly established
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Sponsored by: Rep. Earl Blumenauer
Referred To The Subcommittee On Human Resources. on 02/01/2017
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FCC "ABCs" Act of 2017 [HB-557]
FCC "ABCs" Act of 2017 This bill amends Communications Act of 1934 to direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in the case of a proposed or final rule (including a proposed or final amendment to an existing rule) that may have an economically significant impact, to include in the notice a cost-benefit analysis demonstrating that the benefits outweigh the costs, recognizing that some benefits and costs are difficult to quantify. An "economically significant impact" is defined as an effect on the economy of at least $100 million annually
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Sponsored by: Rep. Robert Latta
Introduced In House on 01/13/2017
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Transit Security Grant Program Flexibility Act [HB-549]
Transit Security Grant Program Flexibility Act (Sec. 2) This bill amends the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 to permit the use of public transportation security assistance grant funds for backfill associated with security training. (Sec. 3) Funds provided pursuant to such a grant for a specified authorized use shall, with two exceptions, remain available for use by a grant recipient for at least 36 months. Any such funds used for security improvements for public transportation systems or security improvements for
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Sponsored by: Rep. Donald Payne
Received In The Senate And Read Twice And Referred To The Committee On Homeland Security And Governmental Affairs. on 02/01/2017
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United States Commission on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Act of 2017 [HB-545]
United States Commission on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Act of 2017 This bill establishes the United States Commission on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to investigate and address any practices on the part of OPEC that prevent or reduce competition in the global oil market. The Commission shall be composed of a bipartisan group of 16 experts on energy and related matters chosen by the leadership of both parties in Congress and appointed by the President. All members of the Commission must be U.S. citizens.
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Sponsored by: Rep. Alexander Mooney
Introduced In House on 01/13/2017
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Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act of 2017 [HB-538]
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act of 2017 (Sec. 3) This bill redesignates the Ocmulgee National Monument in Georgia as the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park. The boundary of the park is adjusted to include approximately 2,100 acres. The Department of the Interior may acquire lands and interests within the boundaries of the park by donation, purchase from a willing seller, or exchange, but not by condemnation. Interior shall administer any acquired land as part of the park. (Sec. 4) Interior shall conduct a special
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Sponsored by: Rep. Sanford Bishop
Committee On Energy And Natural Resources. Reported By Senator Murkowski With An Amendment In The Nature Of A Substitute. With Written Report No. 115-50. on 05/09/2017