United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2021
This resolution recognizes the Islamic faith as one of the great religions of the world, acknowledges the onset of Ramadan (the holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal for Muslims), and expresses respect to Muslims in the United States and throughout the world on this occasion.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2021
Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act of 2021 This bill authorizes and establishes procedures for federal courts to issue extreme risk protection orders. An extreme risk protection order is a federal court order that prohibits a person from purchasing, possessing, or receiving a firearm or ammunition. A family or household member, or a law enforcement officer, may petition for an extreme risk protection order with respect to an individual who poses a risk to themselves or others. The bill also expands the categories of persons who are prohibited from purchasing, shipping, transporting, possessing, or receiving a firearm or ammunition. Specifically, it adds, as a new category, persons who are subject to an extreme risk protection order.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2021
Khalid Jabara and Heather Heyer National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality Act of 2021 or the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act of 2021 This bill creates grants for state and local governments to combat hate crimes. It also authorizes additional penalties for hate crime offenses. Specifically, it establishes grants for states to create state-run hate crimes reporting hotlines. It also authorizes grants for states and local governments to implement the National Incident-Based Reporting System and to conduct law enforcement activities or crime reduction programs to prevent, address, or respond to hate crimes. Finally, in the case of an individual convicted of a hate crime offense and placed on supervised release, the bill allows a court to order that the individual participate in educational classes or community service as a condition of supervised release.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2021
Defending Each and Every Person from False Appearances by Keeping Exploitation Subject to Accountability Act of 2021 or the DEEP FAKES Accountability Act This bill establishes requirements for advanced technological false personation records (i.e., deep fakes) and establishes criminal penalties for related violations. Specifically, it requires producers of deep fakes to generally comply with certain digital watermark and disclosure requirements (e.g., verbal and written statements). It establishes new criminal offenses related to (1) the production of deep fakes which do not comply with related watermark or disclosure requirements, and (2) the alteration of deep fakes to remove or meaningfully obscure such required disclosures. A violator is subject to a fine, up to five years in prison, or both. It also establishes civil penalties and permits individuals to bring civil actions for damages. Additionally, it revises the criminal offense of fraud in connection with certain identification documents to include deep fakes. The bill also directs the Department of Justice to take certain actions, such as publishing a report related to deep fakes that includes a description of the efforts of Russia and China to use technology to impact elections. Software manufacturers who reasonably believe software will be used to produce deep fakes must ensure it has the technical capability to insert watermarks and disclosures. Finally, the bill directs the Department of Homeland Security to establish a task force to, among other things, advance efforts of the federal government to combat the national security implications of deep fakes.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2021
Student Loan Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act This bill establishes temporary programs to provide federal and private student loan forgiveness to certain frontline health care workers. Frontline health care workers are those individuals who have made significant contributions to the medical response (e.g., patient care, medical research, or testing) to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) national emergency. Specifically, the Department of Education (ED) must carry out a program to forgive the outstanding balance of principal and interest due on federal student loans for borrowers who are frontline health care workers. Additionally, the Department of the Treasury must carry out a program to repay in full the outstanding balance of principal and interest due on certain private student loans for borrowers who are frontline health care workers. ED and Treasury must coordinate to ensure that eligibility determinations are consistent across both programs and that frontline health care workers who are eligible for both programs may apply for loan forgiveness with a single application. Further, such programs must be available to frontline health care workers who were borrowers of eligible loans and who died as a result of COVID-19. The bill specifies the notification requirements related to the availability of these programs. ED, Treasury, and the Department of Health and Human Services must jointly establish an intergovernmental working group to assist with the administration of these programs, including the development of the application process. The bill also excludes discharged student loan debt under these programs from an individual's gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
Prohibition of Medicaid Funding for Conversion Therapy Act This bill prohibits state Medicaid programs from covering conversion therapy. The bill defines conversion therapy as any practice or treatment that seeks to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity in exchange for monetary compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 This bill imposes a fee on the carbon content of fuels, including crude oil, natural gas, coal, or any other product derived from those fuels that will be used so as to emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The fee is imposed on the producers or importers of the fuels and is equal to the greenhouse gas content of the fuel multiplied by the carbon fee rate. The rate begins at $15 per metric ton of CO2-e in 2021, increases by $10 each year, and is subject to further adjustments based on the progress in meeting specified emissions reduction targets. The bill includes exemptions for fuels used for agricultural or nonemitting purposes, exemptions for fuels used by the Armed Forces, rebates for facilities that capture and sequester carbon dioxide, and border adjustment provisions that require certain fees or refunds for carbon-intensive products that are exported or imported. The fees must be deposited into a Carbon Dividend Trust Fund and used for administrative expenses and dividend payments to U.S. citizens or lawful residents. The fees must be decommissioned when emissions levels and monthly dividend payments fall below specified levels.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
Public Servants Protection and Fairness Act of 2021 This bill establishes an alternative formula to calculate Social Security retirement benefits for those who receive pensions for certain non-covered employment. (The existing formula is known as the windfall elimination provision.) The alternative formula adjusts an individual's total lifetime earnings based on the proportion of covered earnings (i.e., earnings subject to Social Security payroll taxes). It applies to individuals who (1) first become eligible for benefits after 2022, (2) have earnings from non-covered service performed after 1977, and (3) have less than 30 years of coverage (i.e., years in which a beneficiary is considered to have contributed a substantial amount into the Social Security trust funds). Beneficiaries receive the higher benefit amount as calculated under the alternative method or the existing formula. In addition, the bill provides rebates for certain beneficiaries currently impacted by the existing formula. The Social Security Administration must include non-covered earnings in Social Security account statements, and the Government Accountability Office must study the availability of certain information related to retirement plans maintained by state and local governments.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
Automatic Voter Registration Act This bill provides for automatic voter registration of individuals through state motor vehicle authorities. Specifically, the bill requires each state motor vehicle authority, upon receiving specified identifying information regarding an individual who requests services from the authority, to transmit the identifying information to the appropriate state election official. The state election official must then notify the individual that the individual shall be automatically registered to vote in federal elections unless the individual declines to be registered to vote, does not meet voter registration eligibility requirements, or is already registered to vote. The bill provides an individual with a 21-calendar day period to opt out of automatic voter registration. A state may only use identifying information regarding an individual's citizenship status for determining whether the individual is eligible to vote in federal elections.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
This resolution urges the Department of State to take action on unpaid Peruvian agrarian reform bonds by encouraging Peru to negotiate in good faith with U.S. bondholders regarding payment of these bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2021
Supporting Accurate Views of Emergency Services Act of 2021 or the 911 SAVES Act This bill requires the Office of Management and Budget, by 30 days after the bill's enactment, to categorize public safety telecommunicators as a protective service occupation under the Standard Occupational Classification System.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2021
Prevent Gun Trafficking Act This bill establishes new federal criminal offenses for gun trafficking and related conduct. First, the bill establishes a stand-alone federal criminal offense for gun trafficking. A violation is punishable by a fine, a prison term of up to 10 years, or both. The bill also authorizes the seizure and forfeiture of the firearms and ammunition involved in the offense, the property involved in the offense, and the proceeds (or property traceable to the proceeds) derived from the offense. Second, the bill makes it unlawful to sell or dispose of a firearm or ammunition to any person knowing or having reason to believe that the person intends to sell or dispose of the firearm in violation of a federal law, or to sell or dispose of the firearm to a person in another state in violation of that state's law. A violation is subject to existing penalties under current law—a fine, a prison term of up to 10 years, or both. Current law already authorizes the seizure and forfeiture of firearms and ammunition involved in the offense. This bill also authorizes the seizure and forfeiture of the property involved in the offense and the proceeds (or property traceable to the proceeds) derived from the offense.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2021
Gun Records Restoration and Preservation Act This bill amends several appropriations laws to remove limitations on the authority of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to conduct activities related to the administration of federal firearms laws. Specifically, the bill removes provisions that limit the use of firearms tracing data, limit the disclosure of data under the Freedom of Information Act, prohibit imposing a requirement that gun dealers conduct a physical inventory, prohibit consolidating or centralizing records maintained by federal firearm licensees (e.g., gun dealers), and require national instant criminal background check records to be destroyed within 24 hours.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2021
Keep Your Home and Prevent Homelessness Act of 2021 This bill allows the Department of the Treasury to transfer Troubled Asset Relief Program funds to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Housing Trust Fund. This fund provides grants to states to (1) increase and preserve the supply of rental housing for extremely low-income and very low-income families, including homeless families; and (2) increase homeownership for extremely low-income and very low-income families.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2021 This bill sets forth requirements and incentives to reduce the production of a variety of products and materials, including plastics, and increase efforts to collect, recycle, or compost products and materials. The bill makes certain producers of products (e.g., packaging, paper, single-use products, beverage containers, or food service products) fiscally responsible for collecting, managing, and recycling or composting the products after consumer use. In addition, the bill establishes (1) minimum percentages of products that must be reused, recycled, or composted; and (2) an increasing percentage of recycled content that must be contained in beverage containers. Beginning on January 1, 2023, the bill phases out a variety of single-use products, such as plastic utensils. The bill also sets forth provisions to encourage the reduction of single-use products, including by establishing programs to refund consumers for returning beverage containers and by establishing a tax on carryout bags. The bill creates a temporary moratorium on new or expanded permits for certain facilities that manufacture plastics until regulations are updated to address pollution from the facilities. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must publish guidelines for a national standardized labeling system for recycling and composting receptacles. Producers must include labels on their products that are easy to read and indicate whether the products are recyclable, compostable, or reusable. The EPA must also ensure that certain clothes washers have filtration units as required by this bill. Finally, the bill establishes limitations on the export of plastic waste to other countries.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
This resolution reaffirms the House of Representatives' commitment to media diversity and expresses its pledge to eliminate barriers to such diversity.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women's Health Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a series of programs to increase access to cancer screenings for women. These programs include demonstration projects to train certain health care providers to screen for breast and cervical cancer, and increase co-testing of human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer among populations that have disproportionate rates of cervical cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021 This bill increases the number of residency positions eligible for graduate medical education payments under Medicare for qualifying hospitals, including hospitals in rural areas and health professional shortage areas. Current law provides for an increase of up to 200 positions per fiscal year beginning in FY2023, with a total increase of 1,000 positions; each hospital may receive up to 25 additional positions. The bill provides for an additional increase of 2,000 positions per fiscal year from FY2023-FY2029; during this period, each hospital may receive up to 75 additional positions in total under the bill and current law. Additionally, one-third of the positions that are made available under the bill must be allocated to hospitals that are already operating above applicable resident limits. The bill also requires the Government Accountability Office to report on strategies to increase the diversity of the health professional workforce, including with respect to representation from rural, low-income, and minority communities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Willie O'Ree Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill provides for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Willie O'Ree or, if unavailable, to a member of his family, in recognition of his contributions and commitment to hockey, inclusion, and recreational opportunity.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
This bill requires the Joint Committee on the Library to enter into an agreement to obtain a statue of Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman elected to Congress. The committee shall place the statue in a permanent public location in the U.S. Capitol.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
End Oil and Gas Tax Subsidies Act of 2021 This bill limits or repeals certain fossil fuel oil and gas subsidies for oil companies. Specifically, it increases to seven years the amortization period for geological and geophysical expenditures; repeals the tax credits for producing oil and gas from marginal wells and for enhanced oil recovery; repeals the tax deduction for the intangible drilling and development costs of oil and gas wells; repeals percentage depletion; repeals the tax deduction for tertiary injectant expenses; repeals the passive loss exception for working interests in oil and gas property; denies the tax deduction for income attributable to domestic production activities for oil and gas activities; prohibits the use of the last-in, first-out (LIFO) accounting method by major integrated oil companies; limits the foreign tax credit for dual capacity taxpayers (i.e., taxpayers who are subject to a levy of a foreign country or U.S. possession and receive specific economic benefits from such country or possession); and expands the definition of crude oil for purposes of the excise tax on petroleum and petroleum products to include any oil derived from a bitumen or bituminous mixture (tar sands), and any oil derived from kerogen-bearing sources (oil shale).
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Ending Punitive, Unfair, School-based Harm that is Overt and Unresponsive to Trauma Act of 2021 or the Ending PUSHOUT Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to award grants to local educational agencies and nonprofit organizations for the purpose of reducing suspension and expulsion of students (i.e., exclusionary disciplinary practices). The bill requires ED to collect data on exclusionary discipline in schools. It also establishes a joint task force to end school pushout.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Labor to promulgate an occupational safety or health standard on prevention of exposure to excessive heat. Excessive heat includes outdoor or indoor exposure to heat at levels that exceed the capacities of the body to maintain normal body functions and may cause heat-related injury, illness, or fatality. In addition, the bill establishes requirements concerning (1) training and education to prevent and respond to heat illness, and (2) whistle-blower protections.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish standards for facilities holding aliens in its custody, phases out using non-DHS facilities for such purposes, and contains other related provisions. The standards shall comply with the American Bar Association's Civil Immigration Detention Standards. The DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) shall conduct periodic unannounced inspections of each facility and shall take various actions against noncompliant facilities, including imposing fines, cancelling contracts, and closing facilities. DHS shall report to Congress any death of an alien in its custody within 24 hours and conduct an investigation within 30 days that identifies policy changes that could reduce the likelihood of such a death. DHS is prohibited from entering into contracts for third parties to operate detention facilities or alternatives to detention programs and shall terminate existing contracts within three years of the bill's enactment. The bill establishes that OIG facility inspection reports and contracts for an outside entity to operate a detention facility are records available to the public under the Freedom of Information Act. DHS shall maintain certain information relating to detained aliens, including the alien's location and whether the alien was separated from family. The bill provides for various requirements and procedures related to detaining aliens, including (1) prohibiting DHS from detaining children, (2) imposing a presumption that an alien should be released, and (3) establishing that aliens in custody shall be subject to the least restrictive conditions. The bill also abolishes mandatory detention for asylum seekers.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance Act of 2021 or the EACH Act of 2021 This bill requires federal health care programs to provide coverage for abortion services and requires federal facilities to provide access to those services. The bill also permits qualified health plans to use funds attributable to premium tax credits and reduced cost sharing assistance to pay for abortion services.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2021
Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2021 This bill provides for the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley. After the award the medal shall be given to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
Fair Transportation Act This bill addresses the disbursement of surface transportation funding in an equitable way by federal, state, and local entities. Specifically, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) must review the extent to which states consider equity and improve equity outcomes in the use of federal surface transportation funds at all phases of project delivery, including the diverse transportation needs of economically disadvantaged and underserved populations. Additionally, the Department of Transportation (DOT) must carry out a transportation equity research program for research and demonstration activities that focus on the impacts that surface transportation planning, investment, and operations have on economically disadvantaged and underserved populations, including communities of color, low-income communities, and individuals with disabilities. The GAO must also review discretionary grant programs for surface transportation projects to determine the extent to which DOT is awarding funding through such programs to projects that serve groups or populations experiencing differential impacts in the transportation sector. Further, DOT must issue guidance on equity consideration metrics and best practices while disbursing federal funds.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
Children and Media Research Advancement Act or the CAMRA Act This bill requires the National Institutes of Health to fund research regarding the effects of media on infants, children, and adolescents. Such research must examine the impact of media (e.g., social media, television, video games) on cognitive, physical, and social-emotional development.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
Minority Diabetes Initiative Act This bill authorizes grants for diabetes-related health care services in minority communities. The Department of Health and Human Services may make these grants to public and nonprofit health care providers.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
Affordable Insulin for the COVID-19 Emergency Act This bill eliminates cost-sharing under the Medicare prescription drug benefit and Medicare Advantage for insulin and associated medical supplies during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). The bill also allows beneficiaries to receive their insulin and supplies via mail order during the emergency period.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
This resolution recognizes the disparity between wages paid to men and women, and its impact on women, families, and the nation and reaffirms Congress' commitment to supporting equal pay and to narrowing the gender wage gap.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2021
Holistic Economic Aid for Low-Income Neighborhood Growth Act of 2021 or the HEALING Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to make grants to states, local governments, Indian tribes, insular areas, and other institutions serving or owned by minorities to carry out Community Development Block Grant activities and other assistance in low- and moderate-income areas. Additionally, HUD must carry out a Civil Unrest Business Recovery Program to provide compensation to certain for-profit entities for damages from social and civil unrest during 2020 and to support business-led economic development.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2021
Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2021 or the CROWN Act of 2021 This bill prohibits discrimination based on a person's hair texture or hairstyle if that style or texture is commonly associated with a particular race or national origin. Specifically, the bill prohibits this type of discrimination against those participating in federally assisted programs, housing programs, public accommodations, and employment. Persons shall not be deprived of equal rights under the law and shall not be subjected to prohibited practices based on their hair texture or style. The bill provides for enforcement procedures under the applicable laws.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2021
End Polluter Welfare Act of 2021 This bill limits or eliminates certain fossil fuel oil and gas subsidies for oil companies, including by (1) eliminating the limit on liability for offshore facilities and pipeline operators; (2) eliminating the authority of the Department of Energy to carry out the Fossil Energy Research and Development Program and prohibiting funds made available to the Advanced Research Project Agency from being used to carry out any project that supports fossil fuels; (3) terminating certain provisions relating to enhanced oil recovery, producing oil and natural gas from marginal wells, and limitations on percentage depletion for oil and natural gas wells; (4) terminating other deductions and accounting methods supporting oil, natural gas, and coal companies; (5) increasing the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund financing rate; (6) denying a tax deduction for removal costs and damages relating to oil spills; (7) imposing an excise tax on the removal price of any taxable crude oil or natural gas; (8) increasing amortization periods for tertiary injectant expenses, development expenditures of a mine or other natural deposit, mining exploration expenditures, and intangible drilling and development costs for oil and gas wells and geothermal wells; (9) repealing the tax credits for the production of electricity from refined coal and for carbon oxide sequestration; and (10) requiring a study and elimination of certain other fossil fuel subsidies.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2021
Safe and Accountable Federal Energy Review for Pipelines Act of 2021 or the SAFER Pipelines Act of 2021 This bill revises the process used by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to review a pipeline expansion project. Before granting a certificate for a proposed pipeline expansion project, FERC must conduct (1) a full evidentiary hearing on any contested issue of need for the expansion; or (2) a cumulative review of major energy infrastructure projects planned throughout the region of the expansion, their purported purpose and need, and their prospective impacts on state and regional energy goals. In addition, the bill outlines criteria FERC must consider before granting such a certificate. In addition to existing environmental review requirements, FERC must meet new environmental review requirements for interstate natural gas pipeline projects, including the requirement to consider the cumulative impacts of other natural gas pipeline projects as specified by this bill. Finally, FERC must monitor approved pipeline projects for five years to ensure that environmental mitigation steps have been implemented.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2021
War Powers Act Enforcement Act This bill prohibits the use of federal funds in contravention of the War Powers Resolution. That resolution provides procedures for Congress and the President to participate in decisions to send the Armed Forces into hostilities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Environmental Justice For All Act This bill establishes several environmental justice requirements, advisory bodies, and programs to address the disproportionate adverse human health or environmental effects of federal laws or programs on communities of color, low-income communities, or tribal and indigenous communities. Specifically, the bill prohibits disparate impacts on the basis of race, color, or national origin as discrimination. Aggrieved persons may seek legal remedy when faced with such discrimination. In addition, the bill directs agencies to follow certain requirements concerning environmental justice. For example, agencies must prepare community impact reports that assess the potential impacts of their actions on environmental justice communities under certain circumstances. Further, it creates a variety of advisory bodies and positions, such as the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council. Among other things, the council must issue an environmental justice strategy. It also establishes requirements and programs concerning chemicals or toxic ingredients in certain products. For example, the bill (1) requires certain products (e.g., cosmetics) to include a list of ingredients or warnings; and (2) provides grants for research on designing safer alternatives to chemicals in certain consumer, cleaning, toy, or baby products that have an inherent toxicity or that are associated with chronic adverse health effects. Finally, it creates a variety of funding programs, such as a grant program to enhance access to park and recreational opportunities in an urban areas.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Protect DREAMer Confidentiality Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prevent disclosing information from applications to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), except to implement the program. Application information may be shared only to identify or prevent fraudulent claims, for particularized national security purposes relating to the applicant, or to investigate or prosecute a felony not related to immigration status. The bill also prohibits DHS from referring any individual with deferred action status to ICE, CBP, the Department of Justice, or any law enforcement agency.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act of 2021 or the SAFE Banking Act of 2021 This bill generally prohibits a federal banking regulator from penalizing a depository institution for providing banking services to a legitimate cannabis-related business. Prohibited penalties include terminating or limiting the deposit insurance or share insurance of a depository institution solely because the institution provides financial services to a legitimate cannabis-related business and prohibiting or otherwise discouraging a depository institution from offering financial services to such a business. Additionally, proceeds from a transaction involving activities of a legitimate cannabis-related business are not considered proceeds from unlawful activity. Proceeds from unlawful activity are subject to anti-money laundering laws. Furthermore, a depository institution is not, under federal law, liable or subject to asset forfeiture for providing a loan or other financial services to a legitimate cannabis-related business. The bill also provides that a federal banking agency may not request or order a depository institution to terminate a customer account unless (1) the agency has a valid reason for doing so, and (2) that reason is not based solely on reputation risk. Valid reasons for terminating an account include threats to national security and involvement in terrorist financing, including state sponsorship of terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Improving Access to Mental Health Act of 2021 This bill increases the Medicare reimbursement rate for clinical social worker services. The bill excludes clinical social worker services from the prospective payment system in which predetermined amounts form the basis for payment under Medicare. Additionally, the bill alters the definition of clinical social worker services as it relates to Medicare. Under current law, such services (1) include services performed for the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses, and (2) exclude services furnished to an inpatient of a skilled nursing facility as a condition of the facility's participation in the Medicare program. The bill repeals these provisions and instead specifies that such services include certain types of health behavior assessment and intervention.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development and Generating Renewable Energy to Electrify the Nation's Infrastructure and Jobs Act or the BUILD GREEN Infrastructure and Jobs Act This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to establish a green transportation infrastructure program to provide competitive grants to states, local governments, and other entities for capital investments in electrified surface transportation infrastructure projects. DOT must select projects that maximize sustainability, including projects that (1) promote the electrification of all public transportation, (2) contribute to climate resilience and mitigation, (3) reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and (4) achieve energy savings and reduce energy usage compared to other eligible projects. Additionally, DOT must prioritize projects that (1) serve a frontline, vulnerable, or disadvantaged community; (2) are located in an area that has experienced high adverse health and environmental impacts on minority and low-income populations; (3) require federal funds in order to complete an overall financing package; or (4) add a new green space or new state or local park units and outdoor recreational areas. Grants issued under the program may not be less than $2 million, with the exception of grants for project planning, preparation, or design, which are not subject to a minimum amount. The federal share of the cost of a project may not exceed 85% for planning, design, and construction purposes and 50% of the operation and maintenance costs of the project for its first 10 years.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Stephanie Tubbs Jones Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to expand research on, and take other actions to address, uterine fibroids. These are muscular tumors that grow in the wall of the uterus and may cause pain, heavy menstrual bleeding, and reproductive issues. In coordination with the National Institutes of Health and appropriate federal agencies, HHS must undertake research activities on uterine fibroids. In addition, HHS must establish a database of services furnished to individuals diagnosed with uterine fibroids under Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program and must develop a report on federal and state expenditures for such services. Additionally, HHS must disseminate information on uterine fibroids to the public and to health care providers, including information on the elevated risk for minority women and available treatments.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
Huntington's Disease Disability Insurance Access Act of 2021 This bill expedites payment of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits and eligibility for Medicare coverage for those with Huntington's disease. This is an inherited disorder that causes brain cells to die, including in areas of the brain that help to control voluntary movement. Specifically, the bill eliminates the 5-month waiting period for SSDI benefits and the subsequent 24-month waiting period for Medicare coverage for individuals with Huntington's disease. Under current law, individuals generally must wait five months after the onset of disability to begin receiving SSDI benefits and an additional 24 months to become eligible for Medicare.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2021
American Dream Employment Act of 2021 This bill establishes that, for the purposes of eligibility to be an officer or employee of an office of Congress, an individual shall be treated as a U.S. citizen if that individual has (1) employment authorization under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, (2) employment authorization under a grant of deferred enforced departure, or (3) temporary protected status. (Generally, these programs and statuses allow eligible aliens to remain and work in the United States.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2021
Medicare for All Act of 2021 This bill establishes a national health insurance program that is administered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Among other requirements, the program must (1) cover all U.S. residents; (2) provide for automatic enrollment of individuals upon birth or residency in the United States; and (3) cover items and services that are medically necessary or appropriate to maintain health or to diagnose, treat, or rehabilitate a health condition, including hospital services, prescription drugs, mental health and substance abuse treatment, dental and vision services, and long-term care. The bill prohibits cost-sharing (e.g., deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments) and other charges for covered services. Additionally, private health insurers and employers may only offer coverage that is supplemental to, and not duplicative of, benefits provided under the program. Health insurance exchanges and specified federal health programs terminate upon program implementation. However, the program does not affect coverage provided through the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Indian Health Service. The bill also establishes a series of implementing provisions relating to (1) health care provider participation; (2) HHS administration; and (3) payments and costs, including the requirement that HHS negotiate prices for prescription drugs. Individuals who are age 18 or younger, age 55 or older, or already enrolled in Medicare may enroll in the program starting one year after enactment of this bill; other individuals may buy into the program at this time. The program must be fully implemented two years after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2021
Tax Excessive CEO Pay Act of 2021 This bill increases the current 21% income tax rate of corporations whose ratio of compensation of their principal executive officers or other highest compensated employees to median worker compensation is more than 50 to 1, in which case the increase is 0.5%. The pay ratio disparity extends from 100 to 1 to 500 to 1, in which case the increase is 5%. The bill exempts from such increase certain corporations based upon their average annual gross receipts.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2021
VA Employee Fairness Act of 2021 This bill repeals provisions excluding any matter or question concerning professional conduct or competence; peer review; or the establishment, determination, or adjustment of employee compensation from the applicability of collective bargaining rights for Veterans Health Administration employees.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2021
Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act This bill requires private health insurance plans to cover diagnosis and treatment of congenital anomalies and birth defects, such as reconstructive services and items. Coverage must include services and items that functionally improve, repair, or restore any body part that is medically necessary for normal bodily functions or appearance, as determined by the treating physician. Coverage limits and cost-sharing requirements for such services and items may not be more restrictive than those applicable to all medical and surgical benefits under the plan.
![Official portrait of Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/w000822_200.jpg)