Poverty Legislation - Federal Government

A bill to amend title II of the Public Health Service Act to provide for an improved method to measure poverty so as to enable a better assessment of the effects of programs under the Public Health Service Act and the Social Security Act, and for other purposes. 9/26/2008--Introduced. Measuring American Poverty Act of 2008 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Bureau of the Census, in collaboration with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, to calculate modern poverty thresholds and modern poverty rates for each calendar year. Declares that the modern poverty threshold for a reference family consisting of two adults and their two related children shall be an amount equal to the average of 120% of the 33rd percentile of the distribution of annual expenditures by such families on food, clothing, and shelter during each of the three most recent years for which data is available from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, a superior federal government source of data,[...]

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A bill to enhance the capacity of the United States Government to fully implement the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 and to improve access to safe drinking water and sanitation throughout the world. 9/27/2008--Introduced. Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Enhancement Act of 2008 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish the Office of Water which shall: (1) implement the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005; and (2) place primary emphasis on providing safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene. Directs the Secretary of State to establish the Bureau for International Water within the Office of the Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs which shall: (1) coordinate U.S. diplomatic policy regarding global freshwater issues; and (2) ensure that international freshwater issues are represented within the U.S. government.[...]

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To enhance the capacity of the United States Government to fully implement the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 and to improve access to safe drinking water and sanitation throughout the world. 9/27/2008--Introduced. Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Enhancement Act of 2008 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish the Office of Water which shall: (1) implement the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005; and (2) place primary emphasis on providing safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene. Directs the Secretary of State to establish the Bureau for International Water within the Office of the Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs which shall: (1) coordinate U.S. diplomatic policy regarding global freshwater issues; and (2) ensure that international freshwater issues are represented within the U.S. government. [...]

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A bill to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2010 through 2014 to provide assistance to foreign countries to promote food security, to stimulate rural economies, and to improve emergency response to food crises, to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, and for other purposes. 9/22/2008--Introduced. Global Food Security Act of 2008 - States that is U.S. policy to promote global food security, improve agricultural productivity, and support the development of institutions of higher learning. Directs the President to designate an individual to serve as the Special Coordinator for Food Security to advise the President on international food security issues and oversee implementation of a comprehensive food security strategy. Amends the the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize appropriations for programs of agriculture, rural development, and nutrition. Permits certain of such funds to be made available for: (1) the collaborative research support [...]

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To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for an improved method to measure poverty so as to enable a better assessment of the effects of programs under the Social Security Act, and for other purposes. 9/18/2008--Introduced. Measuring American Poverty Act of 2008 - Amends part A of title XI of the Social Security Act to direct the Bureau of the Census, in collaboration with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, to calculate modern poverty thresholds and modern poverty rates for each calendar year. Declares that the modern poverty threshold for a reference family consisting of two adults and their two related children shall be an amount equal to the average of 120% of the 33rd percentile of the distribution of annual expenditures by such families on food, clothing, and shelter during each of the three most recent years for which data is available from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, a superior federal government source of data, or some combination of such sources.[...]

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A bill to amend the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to expand and improve opportunities for service, and for other purposes. 9/12/2008--Introduced. Serve America Act - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to create two new service-learning programs: (1) a Youth Engagement Zones to Strengthen Communities program, providing competitive grants to partnerships between local educational agencies that serve high-need, low-income communities and certain community-based or state entities to engage students and out-of-school youth in service-learning addressing specific challenges faced by their communities; and (2) a Campus of Service program, which annually grants up to 30 institutions of higher education (IHEs) with exemplary service-learning programs the funds to assist their students' pursuit of public service careers, and the right to nominate additional individuals for ServeAmerica Fellowships. Directs the Corporation for National and Community [...]

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A bill to amend the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to establish Encore Service Programs, Encore Fellowship Programs, and Silver Scholarship Programs, and for other purposes. 9/11/2008--Introduced. Encore Service Act of 2008 - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to make eligible for assistance under the National Service Trust program Encore Service programs that engage individuals age 50 or older in national service addressing specific community needs. Gives Encore Service participants age 50 or older five options for their term of service, ranging from full-time to minimum time. Makes such participants eligible for national service educational awards, which they may transfer to others for use within 20 years. Expresses the sense of Congress that, by 2018, 25% of National Service Trust program participants should be age 50 or older. Requires the Corporation for National and Community Service to identify and address the barriers [...]

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A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule set forth as requirements contained in the August 17, 2007, letter to State Health Officials from the Director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the State Health Official Letter 08-003, dated May 7, 2008, from such Center. 7/17/2008--Introduced. Disapproves the rule submitted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services relating to requirements set forth in the State Health Official Letter 07-001, dated August 17, 2007, issued by the Director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the State Health Official Letter 08-003, dated May 7, 2008, from such Center, requiring states that expand the income eligibility level for children under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) above 250% of the federal poverty level to [...]

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