As summer vacation hit its midpoint and a new school year loomed ahead, Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers Friday urged qualified Pell Grant-eligible students to apply for new grants worth between $750 and $4,000 that will help make college more affordable.

Highlighting his efforts on environmental issues and math and science education, Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers was honored Wednesday evening by the Ripon Society for exemplifying the words of President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt.

When Douglas Sharp returns for his senior year at Forest Hills Central High School this fall, he’ll have a unique “What I Did During My Summer Vacation” essay to share with his classmates. Sharp, who turns 17 on Aug. 7, is spending three weeks in Washington, D.C., this month, working as a page in the U.S. House of Representatives, having received a nomination through his Congressman, Vernon J. Ehlers, R-Grand Rapids. Sharp began his service on July 10 and will complete his program on July 28.

On Monday, the House will meet at 12:30 p.m. for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 p.m.

Suspensions (7 bills):

(Bills on suspension are generally considered non-controversial and have reduced debate time, but require a two-thirds majority vote to be passed.)

1. H.R. 4075 - Marine Mammal Protection Act Amendments of 2005: Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (the Act) to grant limited authority for a marine mammal product to be exported from the United States, including in cases where an Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo residing in Alaska exports the animal as part of a cultural exchange. Makes it unlawful for anyone under U.S. jurisdiction to release any captive marine mammal unless authorized under the Act.
2. H.R. 3085 - To amend the National Trails System Act to update the feasibility and suitability study originally prepared for the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail and provide for the inclusion of new trail segments, land components, and campgrounds associated with that trail, and for other purposes: Amends the National Trails System Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior: (1) to submit to Congress a study regarding the feasibility and suitability of designating the Benge and Belle routes, the land components of the designated water routes in Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, the routes from the collection forts in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee to the emigration depots, and related campgrounds located along such routes and in such land components, by which the Cherokee Nation was removed to Oklahoma as additional components of the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail; and (2) upon completion of such study, if such routes are a feasible and suitable addition to the Trail, to designate them as components of such Trail.
3. H.R. 4376 - Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Massachusetts Act of 2005: Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the National Park Service, to enter into a cooperative agreement with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts on behalf of Springfield Technical Community College to provide financial assistance to such College for the purpose of maintaining, preserving, renovating, and rehabilitating any historic structures within the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, including historic structures within the Preservation Control Area. 
4. H.R. 3496 - National Capital Transportation Amendments Act of 2005: Amends the National Capital Transportation Act of 1969 to authorize the Secretary of Transportation to provide additional funding through grants to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to finance in part the capital and preventive maintenance projects included in the Capital Improvement Program. Sets forth certain limits on the use of such grants. Prohibits funding to WMATA until it notifies the Secretary that certain amendments to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Compact have taken effect.
5. H.R. 3729 - Federal Judiciary Emergency Tolling Act of 2005: Authorizes the chief judge of a federal judicial district or circuit to delay, toll, or otherwise grant relief from time deadlines (including the time for filing or perfecting an appeal) for any class of cases pending or thereafter filed in the district court or bankruptcy court of the district, or for any class of cases pending in the court of appeals, in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency situation requiring the closure of courts or rendering it impracticable for the U.S. Government or a class of litigants to comply with deadlines imposed by any federal or state law or rule that applies in federal court.
6. H.R. 1871 - Volunteer Pilot Organization Protection Act of 2006: Amends the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 to exempt from liability a nonprofit volunteer pilot organization or a referring agency of such organization that flies for public benefit, its staff members, and its volunteers for harm caused by a volunteer while flying, in furtherance of the purpose of the organization, an aircraft for which the volunteer was properly licensed and insured, unless the conduct constitutes a federal crime of terrorism, or an act of domestic terrorism, or the entity has been convicted of providing material support to terrorists. (Maintains the Act's current liability provisions for willful or criminal misconduct, gross negligence, reckless misconduct, or a conscious, flagrant indifference to rights or safety.) 
7. H.R. 4019 - To amend title 4 of the United States Code to clarify the treatment of self-employment for purposes of the limitation on State taxation of retirement income: Amends federal law provisions which prohibit states from taxing the retirement income of nonresidents to include a prohibition on taxing retirement income paid by a partnership to a nonresident retired partner under any written plan, program, or arrangement in effect immediately before retirement begins. Makes such amendment applicable to retirement income received after December 31, 1995.

On Tuesday, the House will meet at 9 a.m. for morning hour and 10 a.m. for legislative business.

Suspensions (11 bills):

1. H.Con.Res. 438 - Expressing the sense of the Congress that continuation of the welfare reforms provided for in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 should remain a priority: Expresses the sense of the Congress that increasing success in moving families from welfare to work, as well as in promoting healthy marriage and other means of improving child well-being, as promoted by the welfare reforms in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, are very important Government interests and should remain priorities for the responsible federal and state agencies in the years ahead for assisting needy families and others at risk of poverty and dependence on government benefits.
2. S. 2754 - Alternative Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapies Enhancement Act: Alternative Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapies Enhancement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop techniques for the isolation, derivation, production, or testing of stem cells that are capable of producing all or almost all of the cell types of the developing body and may result in improved understanding of treatments for diseases and other adverse health conditions, but are not derived from a human embryo. Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide guidance concerning the next steps required for additional research; (2) prioritize research with the greatest potential for near-term clinical benefit; and (3) take into account techniques outlined by the President's Council on Bioethics and any other appropriate techniques and research.
3. S. 3504 - Fetus Farming Prohibition Act of 2006: Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit any person or entity involved in interstate commerce from: (1) soliciting or knowingly acquiring, receiving, or accepting a donation of human fetal tissue knowing that a human pregnancy was deliberately initiated to provide such tissue; or (2) knowingly acquiring, receiving, or accepting tissue or cells obtained from a human embryo or fetus that was gestated in the uterus of a nonhuman animal. Imposes fines and/or imprisonment for violations of this act.
4. H. Res. 498 - Supporting the goals and ideals of School Bus Safety Week
5. H.R. 4962 - Captain George A. Wood Post Office Building Designation Act (Utica, New York)
6. H.Res. 721 - Supporting the goals and ideals of a Salvadoran-American Day (El Dia del Salvadoreno) in recognition of all Salvadoran-Americans for their hard work, dedication, and contribution to the stability and well-being of the United States
7. H.Res. 908 - Congratulating Italy on winning the 2006 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup
8. H.Res. 905 - Congratulating Kazakhstan on the 15th anniversary of the closure of the world`s second largest nuclear test site in the Semipalatinsk region of Kazakhstan and for its efforts on the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction
9. H.Res. 784 - Commending and supporting Radio Al Mahaba, Iraq`s first and only radio station for women
10. H.R. 860 - To provide for the conveyance of the reversionary interest of the United States in certain lands to the Clint Independent School District, El Paso County, Texas
11. H.Con.Res. 435 - Congratulating Israel`s Magen David Adom Society for achieving full membership in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and for other purposes

H.J.Res. 88 - Marriage Protection Amendment: Constitutional Amendment - Declares that: (1) marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman; and (2) neither the U.S. Constitution nor the constitution of any state shall be construed to require that marriage or the legal incidents of marriage be conferred upon any other union.

On Wednesday and Thursday, the House will meet at 10 a.m. for legislative business. On Friday, the House will meet at 9 a.m. for legislative business.

Suspensions (1 bill):

1. H.R. 5683 - To preserve the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial in San Diego, California, by providing for the immediate acquisition of the memorial by the United States

H.R. 2389 - Pledge Protection Act of 2005: Amends the Federal judicial code to deny jurisdiction to any Federal court, and appellate jurisdiction to the Supreme Court, to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Pledge of Allegiance or its validity under the Constitution. Makes this limitation inapplicable to: (1) any court established by Congress under its power to make needful rules and regulations respecting the territory of the United States; or (2) the Superior Court of the District of Columbia or the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

H.R. 5684 - United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act: Approves the United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement entered into with the government of Oman and the statement of administrative action proposed to implement it. Authorizes the President to proclaim actions, and other appropriate officers of the U.S. government to issue regulations, necessary to ensure appropriate implementation of any provision of this Act that takes effect on the date the Agreement enters into force. Provides for: (1) administration of dispute settlement proceedings; (2) arbitration of claims against the United States covered by the Agreement; and (3) specified tariff modifications. Prescribes requirements for: (1) enforcement of textile and apparel rules of origin; (2) reliquidation of certain entries; (3) actions for relief from imports benefiting from the Agreement; and (3) certain textile and apparel safeguard measures. Amends the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 to make products or services of any foreign country or instrumentality that is a party to the Agreement eligible for U.S. government procurement.

* Possible Motions to go to Conference

* Possible Motions to Instruct Conferees