,,ii #aadth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #ich ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,april #ad1 #bjae ,mr4 ,menendez introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to establish the ,america ,star program within the ,department of ,labor1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,america ,star ,act4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,america ,star company ,the term ,america ,star company means a participating company that is designated as an ,america ,star company under section #c7;e74 7#b7 ,america ,star program ,the term ,america ,star program means the voluntary program established under this ,act4 7#c7 ,applicant company ,the term applicant company means a company that applies for designation as an ,america ,star company4 7#d7 ,participating company ,the term participating company means an applicant company that-- 7,a7 meets the application requirements set forth by the ,secretary under section #c7;b77#a72 and 7,b7 is not ineligible under section #c7;b77#b7 for participation in the ,america ,star program4 7#e7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,labor4 7#f7 ,veteran ,the term veteran has the meaning given the term in section #aja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 #c4 ,america ,star program 7a7 ,establishment ,the ,secretary shall establish1 within the ,department of ,labor1 a voluntary program to be known as the ,america ,star program to annually designate participating companies as ,america ,star companies based on their support for the workforce of the ,united ,states during the previous calendar year4 7b7 ,application process 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall establish procedures for companies seeking a designation under this ,act to apply for participation in the ,america ,star program for a calendar year1 including a deadline for companies to apply for such participation4 7#b7 ,ineligibility ,a company shall be ineligible to participate in the ,america ,star program if-- 7,a7 the ,secretary has determined that such company has committed a serious1 repeated1 or willful violation1 as described in paragraph 7#c71 of a provision under-- 7i7 the ,occupational ,safety and ,health ,act of #aigj 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #fea et seq472 7ii7 the ,national ,labor ,relations ,act 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #aea et seq472 7iii7 the ,fair ,labor ,standards ,act of #aich 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #bja et seq472 7iv7 the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act of #aiic 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #bfja et seq472 7v7 the ,americans with ,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq472 7vi7 the ,age ,discrimination in ,employment ,act of #aifg 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #fba et seq472 or 7vii7 title ,,vii of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;e et seq472 or 7,b7 there is evidence that such company has substantially outsourced1 as defined by the ,secretary1 jobs in the ,united ,states to another country during the previous #e calendar years4 7#c7 ,serious1 repeated1 or willful violation 7,a7 ,serious ,for the purpose of determining whether a violation is serious under paragraph 7#b77;,a71 the ,secretary shall1 with respect to each of the previous #c calendar years1 consider-- 7i7 the number of employees of such company affected by the violation2 7ii7 the degree of risk posed or actual harm caused by the violation to the health1 safety1 or well-being of an employee of such company2 7iii7 the amount of damages incurred or fines or penalties assessed on account of the violation2 and 7iv7 any other consideration the ,secretary determines appropriate4 7,b7 ,repeated ,for the purpose of determining whether a violation is repeated under paragraph 7#b77;,a71 the ,secretary shall consider whether such company has had #a or more additional violations of the same1 or a substantially similar1 requirement during any of the previous #c calendar years4 7,c7 ,willful ,for the purpose of determining whether a violation is willful under paragraph 7#b77;,a71 the ,secretary shall consider whether such company knew of1 showed reckless disregard for1 or acted with plain indifference as to whether the conduct of such company was prohibited by any of the laws listed in paragraph 7#b77;,a7 during any of the previous #c calendar years4 7c7 ,classification groups ,the ,secretary shall place each applicant company that meets the requirements under subsection 7b7 into a classification group based on size and industry4 7d7 ,scoring system 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary1 in consultation with any other relevant ,federal agency as determined by the ,secretary1 shall develop a system to score participating companies based on their performance1 during the previous calendar year1 in the categories described in paragraph 7#b71 compared to other participating companies within the classification group of such company as determined under subsection 7c74 7#b7 ,categories 7,a7 ,in general ,the score that a participating company receives for such company's performance during the previous calendar year shall be based on the following categories3 7i7 ,wages ,the ratio of the total annual compensation1 including benefits1 of the employee receiving the greatest compensation at such participating company compared to the median total annual compensation1 including benefits1 of all employees at such company1 with a higher score for participating companies with a lower such ratio4 7ii7 ,made in ,,usa ,the percentage of the products manufactured or sold by such participating company that meet the standards of the ,federal ,trade ,commission for labeling as ,made in ,,usa1 with a higher score for participating companies with a higher such percentage4 7iii7 ,veterans ,the use of veterans employment initiatives to promote employment opportunities at such participating company for veterans1 with a higher score for participating companies utilizing more robust initiatives as determined by the ,secretary4 ,such initiatives may include-- 7,i7 veterans recruitment and hiring programs2 7,,ii7 job training and counseling programs for veterans2 7,,iii7 internal education programs1 for human resources or hiring staff1 on the skills veterans attain from serving as veterans and the positive roles veterans can play at such participating company2 and 7,,iv7 mentorship programs involving veterans working at such participating company and unemployed veterans4 7iv7 ,additional categories ,for any classification group determined appropriate by the ,secretary1 the ,secretary may add any additional category that such ,secretary determines to be representative of overall positive treatment of workers in the ,united ,states1 including-- 7,i7 the implementation and use of initiatives or practices to promote diversity and employment of women2 7,,ii7 the demonstration of pay parity for men and women of equivalent levels of employment performing equivalent work2 and 7,,iii7 the implementation of worker support programs1 including-- 7aa7 retirement plans2 7bb7 paid family and medical leave insurance2 7cc7 development programs1 such as job training courses or assistance with attaining a higher education degree2 and 7dd7 work schedule flexibility4 7,b7 ,priority of categories ,in scoring each participating company1 the ,secretary shall weigh the categories described in subparagraph 7,a7 by offering the greatest number of points for performance under clauses 7i71 7ii71 and 7iii7 of such subparagraph1 with performance under each such clause receiving an equal weight1 and the least number of points for performance under clause 7iv7 of such subparagraph4 7e7 ,america ,star designation 7#a7 ,in general ,upon scoring each participating company1 the ,secretary shall1 if appropriate1 designate participating companies1 within each classification group receiving the highest1 or relatively high1 scores or otherwise demonstrating exceptional support for workers in the ,united ,states based on performance in the categories under subsection 7d77#b74 7#b7 ,number of designations ,for each calendar year1 the ,secretary shall determine the number of participating companies to designate as ,america ,star companies within each classification group determined under subsection 7c74 7#c7 ,deadline ,on ,labor ,day of each calendar year1 the ,secretary shall announce the companies to be designated as ,america ,star companies4 7f7 ,marketing2 advertising 7#a7 ,program ,the ,secretary shall annually market the ,america ,star program through a webpage1 on the website of the ,department of ,labor1 that includes-- 7,a7 general information describing the ,america ,star program2 7,b7 the relevant information for applying to such program1 including the application process1 the ineligibility criteria1 any deadlines under subsection 7b71 and how to submit such application2 and 7,c7 a list of companies designated under subsection 7e7 as ,america ,star companies for each previous calendar year4 7#b7 ,awards 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall design a label for designation as an ,america ,star company4 7,b7 ,permissible uses ,an ,america ,star company may1 subject to subparagraph 7,c77i71 use a label designed under subparagraph 7,a7 for advertising purposes by displaying such label next to the logo for such company4 7,c7 ,impermissible uses 7i7 ,recipient companies ,an ,america ,star company may not use a label designed under subparagraph 7,a7 to advertise a specific product4 7ii7 ,nonrecipient companies ,a company that is not designated as an ,america ,star company under subsection 7e7 may not use a label designed under subparagraph 7,a7 for any purpose4 7#c7 ,enforcement by ,federal ,trade ,commission 7,a7 ,unfair or deceptive act or practice ,a violation of paragraph 7#b77;,c77ii7 shall be treated as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or practice described under section #ah7;a77#a77;,b7 of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #eg;a7a77#a77;,b774 7,b7 ,powers of ,commission 7i7 ,in general ,the ,federal ,trade ,commission shall enforce this subsection in the same manner1 by the same means1 and with the same jurisdiction1 powers1 and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq47 were incorporated into and made a part of this subsection4 7ii7 ,privileges and immunities ,any person who violates this subsection shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities provided in the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq474 7iii7 ,rulemaking ,the ,federal ,trade ,commission may promulgate standards and rules to carry out this subsection in accordance with section #eec of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4