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If by “legislative accomplishments” you mean “Has he authored a lot of bills that have been voted into law?” not very much. He’s not really a grand-stander. (NOTE: I’ve gotten some blow-back on this assertion because he ran for President (nearly won too). Nonetheless, I stand by my characterization.)His biggest accomplishments have been the hundreds of amendments he has gotten passed attached to bills introduced by other members of Congress (of both parties) that have improved those bills or made them less harmful to American’s freedoms.Bernie’s accomplishments(The actions I consider to be “legislative accomplishments” are shown in bold face type.)Elected by the state of Vermont 8 times to serve in the House of Representatives.The longest-serving independent in U.S. congressional history.Is by far the member of Congress best regarded by his constituents.He was dubbed the “amendment king” in the House of Representatives for passing more amendments than any other member of Congress.Ranking member on the Senate Budget Committee.Former student organizer for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).Led the first ever civil rights sit-in in Chicago history to protest segregated housing.In 1963, Bernie Sanders participated in MLK’s Civil Rights March. One of only 2 sitting US Senators to have heard MLK’s “I have a Dream Speech” in person in the march on Washington, DC.Former professor of political science at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and at Hamilton College.Former mayor of Burlington, VT. In a stunning upset in 1981, Sanders won the mayoral race in Burlington, Vermont’s largest city. He shocked the city’s political establishment by defeating a six-term, local machine mayor. Burlington is now reported to be one of the most livable cities in the nation.Co-founded the Congressional Progressive Caucus and chaired the group for its first 8 years.(BTW the CPC has for each of the last 7 budget years authored and published a Federal Budget proposal that would have created more jobs and reduced the National Debt significantly faster than the proposals of either political party or the Executive Branch. ‘The People’s Budget’: Analysis of the Congressional Progressive Caucus budget for fiscal year 2018)Both the NAACP and the NHLA (National Hispanic Leadership Agenda) have given Sanders 100% voting scores during his tenure in the Senate. Earns a D- from the NRA.1984: Mayor Sanders established the Burlington Community Land Trust, the first municipal housing land-trust in the country for affordable housing. The project becomes a model emulated throughout the world. It later wins an award from Jack Kemp-led HUD.1991: one of a handful in Congress to vote against authorizing US military force in Iraq. “I have a real fear that the region is not going to be more peaceful or more stable after the war,” he said at the time.1992: Congress passes Sanders’ first signed piece of legislation to create the National Program of Cancer Registries. A Reader’s Digest article calls the law “the cancer weapon America needs most.” All 50 states now run registries to help cancer researchers gain important insights.November 1993: Sanders votes against the Clinton-era North American Free Trade Agreement. Returning from a tour of factories in Mexico, Sanders says: “If NAFTA passes, corporate profits will soar because it will be even easier than now for American companies to flee to Mexico and hire workers there for starvation wages.”July 1996: Sanders is one of only 67 (out of 435, 15%) votes against the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act, which denied federal benefits to same-sex couples legally married. Sanders urged the Supreme Court to throw out the law, which it did in a landmark 2013 ruling – some 17 years later.July 1999: Standing up against the major pharmaceutical companies, Sanders becomes the first member of Congress to personally take seniors across the border to Canada to buy lower-cost prescription drugs. The congressman continues his bus trips to Canada with a group of breast cancer patients the following April. These brave women are able to purchase their medications in Canada for almost one-tenth the price charged in the States.August 1999: An overflow crowd of Vermonters packs a St. Michael’s College town hall meeting hosted by Sanders to protest an IBM plan to cut older workers’ pensions by as much as 50 percent. CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and The New York Times cover the event. After IBM enacts the plan, Sanders works to reverse the cuts, passing a pair of amendments to prohibit the federal government from acting to overturn a federal district court decision that ruled that IBM’s plan violated pension age discrimination laws. Thanks to Sanders’ efforts, IBM agreed to a $320 million legal settlement with some 130,000 IBM workers and retirees.November 1999: About 10 years before the 2008 Wall Street crash spins the world economy into a massive recession, Sanders votes “no” on a bill to undo decades of financial regulations enacted after the Great Depression. “This legislation,” he predicts at the time, “will lead to fewer banks and financial service providers, increased charges and fees for individual consumers and small businesses, diminished credit for rural America and taxpayer exposure to potential losses should a financial conglomerate fail. It will lead to more mega-mergers, a small number of corporations dominating the financial service industry and further concentration of power in our country.” The House passed the bill 362-57 over Sanders’ objection.October 2001: Sanders votes against the USA Patriot Act. “All of us want to protect the American people from terrorist attacks, but in a way that does not undermine basic freedoms,” Sanders says at the time. He subsequently votes against reauthorizing the law in 2006 and 2011.October 2002: Sanders votes against the Bush-Cheney war in Iraq. He warns at the time that an invasion could “result in anti-Americanism, instability and more terrorism.” Hillary Clinton votes in favor of it.November 2006: Sanders defeats Vermont’s richest man, Rich Tarrant, to be elected to the U.S. Senate. Sanders, running as an Independent, is endorsed by the Vermont Democratic Party and supported by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.December 2007: Sanders’ authored energy efficiency and conservation grant program passes into law. He later secures $3.2 billion in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for the grant program.September 2008: Thanks to Sanders’ efforts, funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program funding doubles, helping millions of low-income Americans heat their homes in winter.February 2009: Sanders works with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley to pass an amendment to an economic recovery bill preventing Wall Street banks that take taxpayer bailouts from replacing laid-off U.S. workers with exploited and poorly-paid foreign workers.December 2009: Sanders passes language in the Affordable Care Act to allow states to apply for waivers to implement pilot health care systems by 2017. The legislation allows states to adopt more comprehensive systems to cover more people at lower costs.March 2010: President Barack Obama signs into law the Affordable Care Act with a major Sanders provision to expand federally qualified community health centers. Sanders secures $12.5 billion in funding for the program which now serves more than 25 million Americans. Another $1.5 billion from a Sanders provision went to the National Health Service Corps for scholarships and loan repayment for doctors and nurses who practice in under-served communities.July 2010: Sanders works with Republican Congressman Ron Paul in the House to pass a measure as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform bill to audit the Federal Reserve, revealing how the independent agency gave $16 trillion in near zero-interest loans to big banks and businesses after the 2008 economic collapse.March 2013: Sanders, now chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and backed by seniors, women, veterans, labor unions and disabled Americans, leads a successful effort to stop a “chained-CPI” proposal supported by Congressional Republicans and the Administration to cut Social Security and disabled veterans’ benefits.April 2013: Sanders introduces legislation to break up major Wall Street banks so large that the collapse of one could send the overall economy into a downward spiral.August 2014: A bipartisan $16.5 billion veterans bill written by Sen. Sanders, Sen. John McCain and Rep. Jeff Miller is signed into law by President Barack Obama. The measure includes $5 billion for the VA to hire more doctors and health professionals to meet growing demand for care.January 2015: Sanders takes over as ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, using the platform to fight for his economic agenda for the American middle class.January 2015: Sanders votes against the Keystone XL pipeline, which would allow multinational corporation TransCanada to transport dirty tar sands oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.March 2015: Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced legislation to expand benefits and strengthen the retirement program for generations to come. The Social Security Expansion Act was filed on the same day Sanders and other senators received the petitions signed by 2 million Americans, gathered by the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.September 2015: Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) today introduced bills to ban private prisons [which have been 3 to 4 times as expensive with much higher rates of prisoner abuse, guard injury than government run prisons], reinstate the federal parole system and eliminate quotas for the number of immigrants held in detention.January 2016: Sanders Places Hold on FDA Nominee Dr. Robert Califf because of his close ties to the pharmaceutical industry and lack of commitment to lowering drug prices. There is no reason to believe that he would make the FDA work for ordinary Americans, rather than just the CEOs of pharmaceutical companies.———————ADDENDUM: Several people have asked about Senator Sanders accomplishments since 2016. Which is a tough question, because the US Senate has done almost no legislating since 2016 of any sort. Senator Sanders introduced 397 bills (sponsored or cosponsored) in the current Congress, but like so many others, his bills are sitting on the Majority Leaders’ desk, not being acted upon.Bernard Sanders Legislation in Process 115th and 116th Congresses.I believe that the 457 bills he introduced during the 115th Congress all lapsed when that Congress ended.

The United States can be broken up into 6 different geographic regions… I AM generalizing, of course ;-)New England (Northeast)Acela Corridor (Power Center)Southeast (Former Confederacy/ Bible Belt)Great Lakes (Rust Belt/ German Belt)Cowboy Country (Wild West States)West Coast (Cultural/ Technological Capitol)These 6 different regions are distinct in their history, culture, economy, politics and general personality differences. You can generally “stereotype” or “guess” where an American is from based on the below:New England (the Northeast) - WASP (White Anglo Saxon Protestant) Country “Yankeedom”New England is home of the WASPs, the original Anglo Saxons that settled in the new world. New Englanders are the most educated (Harvard, Yale, MIT, Brown, Dartmouth, Boston College) and the wealthiest region per capita.Culturally, New England was associated with the Episcopalian Church, which is the American version of the Anglican Church. The Episcopalians however are the fastest declining Church population. In essence, New England is the closest to the UK in culture, as the UK too is experiencing a drastic decline in Church attendance. The drop in Church attendance is coupled with the lowest fertility levels in the country, similarly to the UK in general. New Englanders are essentially thought of as the closest thing to Europeans. Minus the accent, if someone from England came to New England, they’d almost be interchangeable, in that their politics, their culture, and their way of life are almost identical. New England is also the whitest part of the country, with the highest percentage of per capita whites is in New England. Vermont (96%), Maine (96%), and New Hampshire (93%) are all in the top 5 in the nation with percentage of whites.In general, New England WASPs are thought of as the people running the country and (since the end of World War II) the world. They care A LOT about what Europe thinks of them. This is because their “power” over the world is dependent on their relationship with the Europeans. As a result, New England wants to emulate whatever the Europeans are doing so that America could become “more European.” At the moment, New Englanders are obsessed with the Scandinavians, and always bring up how Denmark, Sweden and Norway are like paradises on earth.Overall, Americans around the country don’t really see New Englanders that much, except when New Englanders travel on their private jets to “audit” or “inspect” us peasant folk in Middle America. We believe they all have mansions in the Hamptons, a yacht or two, and vacation in Bretton Woods to reminisce on when they took over the world. Their children play polo and lacrosse, and then join the row team (crew). They tend to have “Boston” accents where they over-emphasize their vowels. Because of their close ties with the “civilized” Europeans, they go on and on and on about how Socialism actually works (ahem.. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren) and LOVE talking about Sweden and Denmark. Then once they’re done lecturing us peasants, they go back to their third home in the Hamptons and drink French wine and solve all the world’s problems.2. Acela Corridor (the Economic and Political Center)You see that dark bold red on the right side of the map? That’s the Acela Corridor, the nickname of the train system that goes through Boston, Philadelphia, New York City, and Washington, DC (and into Alexandria, Virginia). This is the center of the world in terms of political, economic, media and influential power. All the big banks, big businesses, and big politics is centered here. Wall Street, all the major news organizations (Fox, NBC, CBS, ABC, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post), the UN Headquarters, the White House, the US Capitol, the Pentagon, the Federal Reserve, and pretty much every major power center of America is centered in this small section of the country.The Acela Corridor is the Cosmopolitan Center of America, where citizens from all over the country intermingle with foreign businessmen, tourists, diplomats and politicians. The Acela Corridor is an absolute rat race, where it is an eat or be eaten mentality. Hell, this is where Donald Trump is from, and hence his ultra-aggressive, no holds barred, form of politics. This region is also home to 64% of all Fortune 500 company headquarters. (Delaware has very favorable laws in place for company incorporations)Overall, the Acela Americans are thought of as “loud, obnoxious and blunt.” They are quick-witted, usually well educated, wear fancy clothing, and refer to the rest of America as “flyover country.” Acela Americans like to come into Middle America just to “study us” as if we are some zoo animals. They then go back to the Acela to report on our weird behaviors in their fancy news or university reports with fancy and big words. They probably have been to France more than they have been to Oklahoma.3. The Southeast (Former Confederate States)The Southeast is home to the former Confederate States of America, where just four generations ago they fought an all out blood bath against those snobby and aggressive northerners. Built on the foundation of agriculture of cotton and tobacco, the southeast Americans utilized sub-saharan African slave labor to increase productivity. The southeast was originally home to over 95% of America’s black population, but since the “Great Exodus” of blacks from the region during both World Wars (to fill factory work), about 55–60% of America’s black population lives in these states. As a consequence, the black-white divide in the South runs deep. It was just literally 52 years ago that racial laws such as Jim Crow were deemed illegal.Culturally, southerners are thought of as VERY religious. This region is also known as the Bible Belt and is predominantly Protestant. The Southern Baptist, Southern Methodist and the general Evangelical movement is very prevalent in southern culture. The Southeast is also home to the largest per capita military population. This is not because military recruits are disproportionately from the Southeast (as the Cowboy states like Texas and the Dakotas have the highest per capita of military recruits) but because the North built most US military installations in the southeast after the Civil War.The rest of the world LOVES to make fun of southern Americans, especially due to their very religious and conservative culture. The southeast is like the Russia of America, in that it is the thorn in the side of the utopic visions of the Acela Corridor (much like Russia is the thorn in the side of Brussels). The southeast tends to view the north as “the damned pagan occupiers.” The north sees them as the “zealous rebels.” They historically always vote in the exact opposite of one another. When the northeast votes Republican, the southeast votes Democrat… and vice versa (as it has been since the 1992 election of Bill Clinton).You know you’ve met someone from the Southeast by their accent, in general. They have a “twang” in their voice, which may have something to do with a generally larger Scottish descendant population than the rest of the country. They tend to be more soft spoken and less traveled than the northeast Americans. Generally a mix of very religious Scottish, English, Cuban and African descendants, the only way you’ll likely run into a southerner is if you go to the south yourself (or if the US military is stationed in your country).4. The Great Lakes States (Rust Belt/German Belt)Spanning from “Upstate New York” through Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota, the Great Lakes States extend through what is known as the “Great Lakes,” or some of the world’s largest lakes. Americans from the Great Lakes are likely descendants of Germans, Scandinavians and Irish who only settled in the United States 1840 or after. Many foreigners mistaken them for Canadians, as their accents (especially Minnesota) are very similar to our Canadian neighbors. And since the Great Lakes states were settled after the 1840s, as the Industrial Revolution was in full steam, the Great Lakes are the most industrialized parts of the country.Many refer to these states also as the “German Belt,” as almost 50% of the population here spoke German until World War I. During World War I, many German Americans here were placed in “registries” and were ostracized as German sympathizers. As a result, many “Anglicized” their last names and forced their children to speak English exclusively. But because of their heavy reliance on industry, the culture of the Great Lakes states is heavily unionized. They are very socially conservative as a result, in that they promote hard-work, close family units, and strong community ties. On the alternative, while they are as socially conservative as the southeast, they tend to be much more fiscally liberal than the southeast. They favor good labor laws, favorable education pay for high skilled or technical work, and thus tend to vote for “Blue Dog Democrats” or socially conservative, yet fiscally liberal Democrats. However, ever since the Democratic Party’s leap to the socially liberal left, the Great Lakes States have become politically homeless, and why Donald Trump’s socially conservative, yet slightly fiscally liberal message resonated with them.You’ll know if you met someone from the Great Lakes states if they sound borderline Canadian. They also are very genuinely nice people, yet slightly more soft spoken than the northeast. And like the southeast, the only way you’re likely to meet someone from these states is if you go there directly, as many Great Lakes residents don’t necessarily travel abroad, unless to Canada. They LOOOOVE lakes, and many of them view lakes as paradise. Most have a “cabin” up north, where they store a boat, an ATV and a snowmobile. When they get a break from their Union job, they go up to their cabin where they love to hunt, fish, or take their ATV out on the wide open country of the area.5. Cowboy Country (Wild West States)Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, the Dakotas, Wyoming, Montana, Kansas and Nebraska… this is home of the infamous WILD WEST! When Americans colonized the Atlantic coast, they forced the Natives across the Mississippi River. BUT, millions and millions of Europeans continued to pour in at American ports during the 1800s. The original Americans didn’t want all these new immigrants living with them, since their cities were already overpopulated passed their capacity to give them a proper job, home or good way of life. Instead, these new immigrants were handed a rifle and told to go out and fetch themselves a plot of land. The Spanish Empire had been fighting the Indians on the west of the Mississippi River for the prior 300 years. The preferred method of fighting them was on horseback with a rifle. These Spanish colonists were known as “Vaqueros,” or “Buckaroos” as the language challenged Americans referred to them. Eventually, Buckaroos simply became known as “Cowboys.”Cowboys became famous all throughout the world during the late 19th and early 20th century. The “Wild West” was an absolute blood bath, with gun battles and chaos around every plateau. Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Colonel Custer, just to name a few, were famous Cowboys or Soldiers that fought not only the Natives, but other Cowboys. The closest European or Asian comparison would be the Cossacks of Russia, who were soldiers loyal to the Tsar that fought the Siberians and Mongols to their east. Cowboys were loyal to the American Republic that fought Natives to their west. The Cowboys that settled on these lands eventually built elaborate farms that we now refer to as the “Wheat Belt” since it is home to the most food production than anywhere else in the world.Cowboys, Texans, Rodeos, Ranchers, Buckaroos… this part of the country is per capita the highest military service part of the country. More Texans join the US military than any other state, with the Dakotas, Wyoming, and Montana also providing substantial military recruits. Many in this part of the country have enough personal weapons to fuel an entire platoon of men, due to their origins as settlers that fought the Natives. And similar to the southeast and Great Lakes States, it’s very unlikely you’ll meet someone from this region, unless it’s a Texan oil businessman or an American soldier stationed overseas.Americans from these states tend to be VERY patriotic, much like the Cossacks of Russia are VERY patriotic. And like the Cossacks, they are also very religious and conservative. They have a viewpoint of the world of absolute self reliance and pure individualism. They overwhelmingly vote Republican historically, due to the general Republican mentality of self reliance and less government intervention. The last thing these Cowboys want is some Harvard educated New Yorker coming to their town and telling them how to do things better.6. West Coast (Northeast Transplants)After the Wild West was tamed by the Cowboys following a 50 year bloodbath, the wealthy and educated New Yorkers and New Englanders felt safe enough to buy property out west. They took their huge sums of money, their close ties with powerful Acela Americans, and built up the once Spanish Imperial outposts of Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco into elaborate and magnificent metropolitan areas. The West Coast, therefore, is considered more culturally similar to New York, Massachusetts and Washington, DC than it is Texas or Colorado.One of the reasons the WASP transplants moved out to the west coast was the desire of Washington, DC to build a Pacific Fleet in order to not only solidify its rule over the west, but also to build trade networks with the East Asians. California prospered as a consequence of trade with the Asians, and after preventing Japan from taking control of the Pacific, California is now the wealthiest state in the Union. California, in fact, would be the fourth largest economy in the world if it were on its own.West Coast Americans, like the Acela Americans, are very well educated, well traveled and very business and culturally savvy. Amazon, Silicon Valley, and Hollywood all are headquartered along the West Coast and produce the most widely available international perceptions the world have of the United States. Netflix, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Hollywood movies and television, Instagram, and the music industry shines bright all throughout the world from the West Coast. They have a very relaxed demeanor, open minded culture, and are very aesthetically adept. The West Coast understands public perception more than anywhere else in the world, and thus is home to the most plastic surgeries, cosmetic use and tattoos. The rest of America tends to view West Coast Americans as too “plastic” or “fake.” There’s a perception that West Coast Americans, while they live in beautiful cities, are too obsessed with the opinion of others, and have a sort of “aloofness” to them.The United States is a massive country. To travel from Seattle, Washington to New York City would be like traveling from Western Ireland to Armenia. To travel from El Paso to Montana would be like traveling from Tunis to Copenhagen. And like Europe, the United States has very different cultures and ways of life. While you’d be unable to identify the difference of where an American is from by their language unlike Europe, there are definitive cultural and religious differences like as it is in Europe.

“Since the Republicans took over Congress in 1995, no other lawmaker – not Tom DeLay, not Nancy Pelosi – has passed more roll-call amendments (amendments that actually went to a vote on the floor) than Bernie Sanders. He accomplishes this on the one hand by being relentlessly active, and on the other by using his status as an Independent to form left-right coalitions.”Authorize grants or contracts to operate population-based, statewide cancer registries in order to collect certain data for each form of in-situ and invasive cancer except basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. Authorizes grants for planning the registries. Mandates a study on factors contributing to elevated rates of breast cancer mortality in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, directly or through grants and contracts, or both, to provide technical assistance to the States in the establishment and operation of statewide registries. H.R.4206 (Cancer Registries Amendment Act) enacted as S. 3312 (Cancer Registries Amendment Act).104th Congress — 1995-1996Require offenders who are convicted of fraud and other white collar crime to give appropriate notice to victims and other persons in cases where there are multiple victims eligible to receive restitution. H.Amdt. 98 to H.R. 665 (Victims of Justice Act of 1995)The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs should emphasize minimizing the burden on small businesses with 50 or fewer employees. H.Amdt. 210 to H.R. 830 (Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995)Increase funding for the Court of Veterans Appeals by $1.4 million and reduce funding for Housing and Urban Development salaries and expenses by $1.4 million. H.Amdt. 1203 to H.R. 3666 Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997Congress consents to the Vermont-New Hampshire Interstate Public Water Supply Compact to erect and maintain joint public water supply facilities. H.J.Res.129 enacted as S.J.Res.38 (A joint resolution granting the consent of Congress to the Vermont-New Hampshire Interstate Public Water Supply Compact)105th Congress — 1997-1998Congress declares that Ngawang Choephel and other prisoners of conscience in Tibet, as well as in China, should be released immediately, and that the U.S. government should seek access for internationally recognized human rights groups to monitor human rights in Tibet.H.Amdt.174 to H.R.1757 (Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998)Increase funding for the Meals on Wheels program by $5 million and reduce funding for the Food and Drug Administration by $5.5 million. H.Amdt.267 to H.R.2160 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998)Amendment increases funding for the National Guard Starbase program by $2 million. Funding for the increase would be offset by reducing funds comensurately from the NATO Joint Stars program. H.Amdt.289 to H.R.2266 (Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 1998)Prohibit funds for the U.S. Customs Office from being used to allow the importation into the U.S. any material mined, produced, or manufactured by forced or indentured child labor.H.Amdt.368 to H.R.2378 (Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 1998)Increase funding for the office of the U.S. Trade Representative by $1 million and reduce funding for general administrative expenses within the Department of Commerce commensurately. H.Amdt.388 to H.R.2267 (Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998)Encourage lower higher education costs by giving the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education — which administers a competitive grant program for higher education institutions — a broader mission and allow it to make competitive grants available to institutions that cooperate and reduce costs through the joint purchase of goods and services.H.Amdt.569 to H.R.6 (Higher Education Amendments of 1998)Reduce the intelligence budget for fiscal year 1999 by 5% with an exemption for the CIA Retirement and Disability Fund. H.Amdt.614 to H.R.3694 (Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999)Require the Comptroller General to report to Congress regarding the efficacy and benefits of uniformly limiting any commissions, fees, markups, or other costs incurred by customers in the acquisition of financial products. H.Amdt.626 to H.R.10 (Financial Services Act of 1998)Increase funding for nutrition programs for senior citizens by $10 million. H.Amdt.706 toH.R.4101 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999)Prohibit funding to be used to enter into or renew a contract with any company owned, or partially owned, by the People’s Republic of China or the People’s Liberation Army of the People’s Republic of China. H.Amdt.708 to H.R.4103 (Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 1999)$2 million appropriated to the National Archives and Records Administration for the National Personnel Records Center for modernization of its records management system. H.Amdt.724to H.R.4104 (Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 1999) enacted as H.R. 2490 (Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2000)106th Congress — 1999-2000Reduce the appropriation for the Agricultural Research Service by $13 million and to increase the appropriation for the commodity assistance program by $10 million. H.Amdt.127 toH.R.1906 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000)Provide $1 million for a national pilot program to promote agritourism. H.Amdt.136 to H.R.1906 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000)Increase Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding by $20 million; provides $30 million for deficit reduction; and reduces fossil energy research and development funding by $50 million.H.Amdt.258 to H.R.2466 (Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000) enacted as H.R.3194 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2000)Increase funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program by $13 million and reduces Strategic Petroleum Reserve funding accordingly. H.Amdt.270 to H.R.2466 (Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000) enacted as H.R.3194 ( Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2000)At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the following new section: \ RURAL VETERANS HEALTH CARE SERVICES \ SEC. . The house supports efforts to implement improvements in health care services for veterans in rural areas. H.Amdt.442 to H.R.2684 (Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000)Prohibit the use of National Institutes of Health funding to grant an exclusive or partially exclusive license pursuant to chapter 18 of title 35, USC, except in accordance with section 209 of such title (relating to the availability to the public of an invention and its benefits on reasonable terms). H.Amdt.791 to H.R.4577 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2001)Increase funding for weatherization assistance and energy conservation programs by $45 million and reduce fossil fuel energy research and development programs accordingly.H.Amdt.818 to H.R.4578 (Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001)107th Congress — 2001-2002Prohibit the importation of goods on which the United States Customs Service has issued a detention order on the basis that such goods were made by forced or indentured child labor.H.Amdt.238 to H.R.2590 (Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2002)Prohibit use of funds in the bill giving an exclusive or partially exclusive licenses to pharmaceutical companies pursuant to chapter 18, U.S.C., relating to the availability to the public of an invention and its benefits on reasonable terms. H.Amdt.376 to H.R.3061 (Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002)Provide $100 million for federally qualified community health centers. H.Amdt.404 to H.R.3338 (Department of Defense and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Recovery from and Response to Terrorist Attacks on the United States Act, 2002)108th Congress — 2003-2004Increase funding for weatherization assistance grants by $15 million with offsets from other energy conservation activities. H.Amdt.255 to H.R.2691 (Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004)Prohibit the use of funds in the bill to implement any policy prohibiting the Directors of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks from conducting outreach or marketing to enroll new veterans within their respective networks. H.Amdt.336 to H.R.2861 (Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004) enacted as H.R.2673 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004)109th Congress — 2005-2006None.110th Congress — 2007-2008Provide $242 million for the weatherization assistance program. S.Amdt.737 to H.R.1591 (U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007)Establish an energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training program. S.Amdt.1515 toH.R.6 (Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007)Require that not less than 30% of the hot water demand for certain new or substantially modified Federal buildings be met through the installation and use of solar hot water heaters.S.Amdt.1525 to H.R.6 (Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007)Increase specially adapted housing benefits for disabled veterans. S.Amdt.4384 to H.R.3221 (Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008)111th Congress — 2009-2010Require the Comptroller General of the United States to report to Congress on financial assistance for child care available to deployed members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces. S.Amdt.1658 to S.1390 (National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010)Increase funds for the school community garden pilot program by $2.5 million, with an offset.S.Amdt.2271 to H.R.2997 (Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010)Make available $20 million for veteran outreach and reintegration services under the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program from the from Overseas Contingency Operations budget.S.Amdt.2601 to H.R.3326 (Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010)Require the non-partisan Government Accountability Office to conduct an independent audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System that does not interfere with monetary policy, to let the American people know the names of the recipients of over $2 trillion in taxpayer assistance from the Federal Reserve System, and for other purposes. S.Amdt.3738to S.3217 (Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010)Require recipients of TARP funding to meet strict H-1B worker hiring standard to ensure non-displacement of U.S. workers. S.Amdt.306 to H.R.1 (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009)Require the Comptroller General of the United States to report to Congress on financial assistance for child care available to deployed members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces. S.Amdt.1658 to S.1390 (National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010)Require the Administrator of the General Services to make publicly available the contractor integrity performance database established under the Clean Contracting Act of 2008.S.Amdt.4280 to H.R.4899 (Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2010)112th Congress — 2011-2012None.113th Congress — 2013-2014VA reform bill expands health care facilities, allows veterans to go outside the VA system to private health care providers when wait times are too long or if a veteran lives more than 40 miles away from a VA facility, and makes it easier to fire VA officials. S.2450 (Veterans’ Access to Care through Choice, Accountability, and Transparency Act of 2014) enacted as H.R.3230(Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014)Directs the Secretary of the VA to increase, as of December 1, 2013, the rates of veterans’ disability compensation, additional compensation for dependents, the clothing allowance for certain disabled veterans, and dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses and children. Requires each such increase to be the same percentage as the increase in benefits provided under title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act, on the same effective date. S.893 (Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2013)Modify the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or Secretary of the Army over interring the remains and honoring the memory of a person in a national cemetery.S.Amdt.2146 to S.1471 (Alicia Dawn Koehl Respect for National Cemeteries Act)