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Cost Estimate
November 1, 2016
S. 3084 would amend current law and authorize the appropriation of about $17.3 billion over the 2017-2018 period for the operations of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Assuming appropriation of the specified and estimated amounts, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would cost $16.4 billion over the 2017-2021 period and $0.9 billion after 2021.
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Cost Estimate
October 26, 2016
S. 3087 would establish the American Fisheries Advisory Committee within the Department of Commerce (DOC). The committee would comprise three representatives from each of six geographic regions and seven at-large members with experience in the seafood and fisheries industries, as selected by DOC. Under the bill, the committee would be responsible for identifying needs of the fishing industry, developing requests for grants to meet those needs, and reviewing and selecting applications for an existing grant program for approval by DOC.
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Cost Estimate
October 24, 2016
S. 2138 would authorize Small Business Administration (SBA) employees that review federal contracts to delay the acceptance of a subcontracting plan for up to 30 days if the plan fails to maximize the participation of small businesses. The bill also would require the SBA to issue regulations that provide guidance on how to comply with the requirement to maximize small business participation. CBO estimates that implementing S. 2138 would cost the SBA and other federal agencies $11 million over the 2017-2021 period.
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Cost Estimate
October 20, 2016
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 5707 would cost about $4.4 billion over the 2017-2026 period because funds from a government account would be transferred to a privately operated investment fund. Pay-as-you-go procedures apply because that transfer would increase direct spending. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
CBO estimates that enacting the legislation would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits by more than $5 billion in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2027.
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Cost Estimate
October 14, 2016
Under current law, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has the authority to levy penalties and criminal fines against individuals that use fake information about a caller’s identification to defraud or harm another. H.R. 2669 would expand that authority to include the use of text messages and would apply the authority to violators outside of the United States if the recipient is within the United States. The bill also would direct the FCC to develop consumer education materials that provide information for consumers on identifying fraudulent caller activities. Finally, H.R.
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Cost Estimate
October 12, 2016
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency that regulates various aspects of wireline (telephone, for example), wireless, cable, and satellite communications. H.R. 2566 would require certain providers of voice communication services to register with the FCC. It also would require the FCC to issue rules establishing service quality standards for those providers.
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Cost Estimate
September 29, 2016
H.R. 2205 would establish a new law to require businesses to take reasonable steps to protect personal information they maintain in electronic form. Further, H.R. 2205 would require those entities, in the event of a breach in their security systems, to notify individuals whose personal information has been accessed and acquired as a result of the breach. Forty-seven states have laws that govern data security; H.R. 2205 would pre-empt many of those statutes. Finally, H.R.
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Cost Estimate
September 29, 2016
S. 3183 would prohibit people from taking certain actions to circumvent technology used by ticket sellers to enforce online event ticket purchase rules and limits. The bill also would prohibit the resale of tickets obtained in that manner. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would enforce the proposed prohibition.
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Cost Estimate
September 19, 2016
CBO estimates that implementing S. 2992 would cost $13 million over the 2017-2021 period, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts.
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Cost Estimate
September 16, 2016
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency that regulates various aspects of wireline (telephone, for example), wireless, cable, and satellite communications. S. 827 would require certain providers of voice communication services to register with the FCC. It also would require the FCC to issue rules establishing service quality standards for those providers.
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Cost Estimate
September 16, 2016
H.R. 5636 would require the Department of Commerce (DOC) to directly manage the law enforcement and security programs of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and to provide an annual report to the Congress on enforcement and security matters. The act also would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a study on NIST’s current security services and to make recommendations on the use of private contractors to provide those services in the future.
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Cost Estimate
September 15, 2016
H.R. 1550 would require the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) to change the procedures by which it designates certain companies as systemically important financial institutions (SIFIs). Those procedural changes would apply only to SIFIs that are not banking institutions and would affect the regulatory activities of other federal financial regulators including the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve.
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Cost Estimate
September 13, 2016
H.R. 5429 would specify several new requirements for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to meet when developing or amending regulations. The bill would direct the SEC to expand the scope of its analysis of the effects of regulations to include an assessment of the problem the proposed regulation is designed to address, its costs and benefits, and available alternatives, and would require the SEC to review and consider modifying its regulations every five years.
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Cost Estimate
September 9, 2016
H.R. 5104 would prohibit the sale or use of software that circumvents technology used by ticket sellers to prevent mass ticket purchases online. The bill also would prohibit the resale of tickets obtained in that manner. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would enforce the proposed prohibition.
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Cost Estimate
September 9, 2016
S. 2812 would permanently authorize and expand the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Those programs help small businesses compete for research and development contracts. The bill also would authorize federal agencies to use a portion of their funding for research and development to cover administrative costs of the SBIR and STTR programs. S.
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Cost Estimate
September 9, 2016
H.R. 5510 would make several changes to how the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) conducts its investigations and issues new rules and would increase the agency’s annual reporting requirements. Specifically, the bill would codify the definition of “substantial injury” used to determine which acts or practices the agency can declare unlawful, require the agency to consider the costs of regulation weighed against the injury caused by the act or practice when making such a determination, and expand the type of information defendants can use as evidence in cases brought by the FTC. H.R.
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Cost Estimate
September 2, 2016
Under current law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) prohibits the sale or delivery of securities that have not been registered with the SEC. Certain transactions are exempt from this prohibition. H.R. 4850 would expand the exemption to include the sale of securities that meet certain criteria regarding the number of purchasers and aggregate offering amount sold by the issuer in a 12-month period. The bill also would exempt such transactions from state regulation of securities offerings.
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Cost Estimate
August 31, 2016
H.R. 4783 would reauthorize appropriations through 2022 for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. Those programs help small businesses compete for research and development contracts. The bill also would authorize agencies to use a portion of the amounts available to them for research and development on the administrative costs of the SBIR and STTR programs. In addition, H.R.
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Cost Estimate
August 30, 2016
H.R. 5311 would require proxy advisory firms to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and would subject them to certain rules and reporting requirements. H.R. 5311 would define the term proxy advisory firm and direct the SEC to require firms that fall within this definition to register with the agency in order to operate. A proxy advisory firm is one that provides voting recommendations to investment advisors who have the authority to proxy vote for their clients.
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Cost Estimate
August 29, 2016
Under H.R. 4167, new telephone systems that have multiple lines would be required to allow callers to access 9-1-1 services directly, without needing to dial any other numbers or codes. This requirement would apply to entities that manufacture, sell, lease, or install multi-line telephone systems, beginning two years after the date of enactment. However, phones installed before that effective date would not have to be changed if the upgrade would require improving the system’s hardware or software.
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Cost Estimate
August 15, 2016
S. 2219 would direct the Department of Commerce (DOC) to enter into a joint memorandum with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an assessment and analysis of the outdoor recreation economy and issue a report. On the basis of information from the affected departments, CBO estimates that implementing S. 2219 would require an additional four or five people to conduct the study and issue the report and would cost $2 million over the 2017-2021 period; such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
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Cost Estimate
August 5, 2016
S. 2847 would authorize the Small Business Administration (SBA) to request that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review federal agency certifications that their proposed regulations would have no significant effect on small entities. CBO estimates that implementing S. 2847 would cost $10 million over the 2017-2021 period.
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Cost Estimate
August 4, 2016
H.R. 5111 would void certain provisions in standard form contracts (those used in the course of selling or leasing goods and services) that impose restrictions or penalties for one party’s review of the performance of another party under the contract. It also would void and prohibit certain contract provisions that would assign the intellectual property rights for one party’s review of the performance of the contract to any other party.
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Cost Estimate
August 4, 2016
Under current law, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has the authority to levy civil penalties and criminal fines against individuals that use false caller identification information to defraud or harm another. H.R. 2031 would direct the FCC to levy additional criminal penalties against violators who are determined to have the intent of triggering an emergency response by a law enforcement agency or other emergency responder. The bill also would make the violator liable for reimbursement payments to agencies that incur expenses in responding to the incident.
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Cost Estimate
August 3, 2016
H.R. 1301 would direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to amend regulations related to the height and dimensions of certain antenna structures. Under the bill, the regulations would be amended to prohibit private land-use restrictions from applying to antennas used for amateur radio communications if the restrictions prevent or impede those communications. The bill also would require any licensee in an amateur radio service to obtain prior approval from a community association before installing an outdoor antenna. In addition, H.R.
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Cost Estimate
August 1, 2016
Under current law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) prohibits the sale or delivery of securities that have not been registered with the SEC. Certain transactions are exempt from that prohibition but are subject to certain reporting requirements. H.R. 4852 would amend those requirements. H.R. 4852 also would prohibit the SEC from expanding certain reporting requirements and limit how the SEC uses the current information it collects.
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Cost Estimate
July 27, 2016
S. 3009 would modify the eligibility requirements to qualify for a loan under the Small Business Administration (SBA) disaster loan program and expand certain SBA outreach programs. CBO estimates that implementing S. 3009 would have no significant effect on the federal budget.
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Cost Estimate
July 26, 2016
H.R. 5092 would preempt state laws that establish standards under which a “Made in America” or “Made in the U.S.A.” label may be affixed to a product. The bill would reiterate that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is solely responsible for developing and enforcing those standards.
Based on information from the FTC, CBO estimates that there would be no significant cost to implement H.R. 5092 as it would not affect the workload or enforcement activities of the agency.
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Cost Estimate
July 15, 2016
S. 2136 would authorize grants for 2017 to facilitate collaboration between research institutions and small businesses to help small businesses better compete for awards under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. The bill also would authorize agencies to use a portion of the amounts available to them for research and development for the administrative costs of the SBIR and STTR programs. Finally, S. 2136 would authorize appropriations for the Federal and State Technology Partnership program.
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Cost Estimate
July 14, 2016
S. 2997 would direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to study ways to enhance access to telecommunications services during emergencies when mobile service is unavailable. The bill also would redefine the term “essential service provider” to explicitly include certain telecommunication mediums, such as Internet and cable services, in a list of entities that provide essential services. (Providers of essential services are generally provided access to disaster sites in order to restore and repair services during emergency situations.) Finally, S.