Taking Essential Steps for Testing Act of 2012
Public Law 112-202 · H.R. 6118 · 112th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Dec 4, 2012 · Health
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Grimm (R-NY-13)
Cosponsors (13): Rep. Peter Roskam, Rep. Steve Womack,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Taking Essential Steps for Testing Act of 2012 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise sanctions for laboratories that intentionally refer proficiency testing samples required for certification to another laboratory for analysis by: (1) giving the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) discretion to substitute intermediate sanctions for such violations instead of the two-year prohibition against ownership or operation which would otherwise apply, and (2) making the one-year certificate revocation for such a laboratory optional rather than mandatory.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.
S. 3391Related bill
TEST Act
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 16 actions.
- Dec 4, 2012Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 112-202.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Nov 28, 2012FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Nov 15, 2012FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Nov 14, 2012FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- Sep 20, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate, read twice.
- Sep 19, 2012FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6118.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Pitts moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Sep 11, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee .
- CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Jul 13, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
- Jul 12, 2012CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.