United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2018
3-D Firearms Prohibitions Act This bill establishes new restrictions and prohibitions on the sale, acquisition, and distribution of certain unfinished receivers and parts kits that are used to make firearms. Specifically, the bill does the following: treats unfinished receivers as banned hazardous consumer products, generally prohibits the electronic marketing and advertising of unfinished receivers and parts kits, and requires an individual to obtain a serial number before making a firearm.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2018
Restoring Justice for Workers Act This bill prohibits predispute arbitration agreements that require arbitration of an employment dispute. It allows a postdispute arbitration agreement if the employee enters into it voluntarily without coercion and is informed in writing of rights and protections under such agreement. An employer may not retaliate against an employee for refusing to enter into an agreement for arbitrating an employment dispute. The bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to make it an unfair labor practice to interfere with the right of an employee to collectively litigate employment disputes.
United States · United States Congress · 12 October 2018
Finds that no person should face violence or discrimination because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. Honors the contributions of nonprofit organizations and community leaders working to advance tolerance, acceptance, equality, safety and respect for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Americans. Reaffirms support for LGBTQ-inclusive hate crime prevention laws.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2018
No Federal Funds for Public Charge Act of 2018 This bill prohibits the use of federal funds to implement, administer, enforce, or carry out the proposed rule of the Department of Homeland Security entitled "Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds." The rule makes aliens who are likely at any time to become a public charge and receive public benefits inadmissible.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 2018
Prevent Cruel Handling of Information Leading to Deportation Harm Act of 2018 or the Prevent CHILD Harm Act of 2018 This bill amends the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to prevent the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from considering the immigration status of a proposed custodian when determining whether to place an unaccompanied alien child with such person. The Department of Homeland Security may not use information provided by an unaccompanied alien child or information initially obtained by HHS to make a suitability, home study, or secure facility determination in order to apprehend or remove from the United States: the unaccompanied alien child, the proposed or current custodian, a resident of the home in which the proposed or current custodian resides, the proposed or current sponsor, or a resident of the home in which the proposed or current sponsor resides.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2018
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Ostomy Awareness Day. (Ostomy is type of surgery that creates an opening in the abdomen that allows for the removal of bodily waste when an individual has lost normal functions of the digestive or urinary systems due to birth defects, colorectal cancer, bladder cancer, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and other medical conditions.)
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2018
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States should prioritize accelerating the development of blockchain technology to support transparency, security, and authentication in a way that recognizes its benefits and allows consumer protection while supporting future innovation.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2018
Giving Increased Resources to Learning Students Act or the GIRLS Act This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow states to use Student Support and Academic Enrichment grants to supply menstrual hygiene products to students.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2018
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the House should revise its procedures for consideration of legislation and amendments by adopting proposals to: encourage and reward consensus-driven governing, foster the passage of member initiatives that solve constituent priorities, increase accountability and transparency, and elect a Speaker who is representative of the entire body.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2018
Lady Liberty Act of 2018 This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to direct the President to set the number of post-FY2018 refugee admissions at not less than 110,000 persons per fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2018
Directs the President to remove U.S. Armed Forces from hostilities in Yemen, except for Armed Forces engaged in operations authorized under the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, within 30 days unless and until a declaration of war or specific authorization for such use has been enacted into law.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2018
This bill authorizes the President to award the Purple Heart to Louis Boria, Jr., for injuries incurred during World War II and the Korean War while a member of the Marine Corps.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2018
Strengthening Minority-Serving Institutions Act of 2018 This bill permanently extends mandatory funding programs for historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions and increases the authorized funding levels for such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2018
EITC Modernization Act of 2018 This bill modifies the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) to: (1) make certain individuals who are college students or have an aged or disabled dependent eligible for the credit, (2) specify minimum credit amounts for the qualifying students and individuals with an aged or disabled dependent, (3) allow certain EITC recipients to elect to receive the credit payments monthly, and (4) decrease from 25 to 18 the minimum age of eligibility for individuals without dependents. The bill also requires the Internal Revenue Service to establish a Community Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Matching Grant Program to provide matching funds for the development, expansion, or continuation of tax preparation programs to assist low-income taxpayers and members of underserved populations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2018
Violence Against Women Veterans Act This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out a program to assist veterans who have experienced domestic violence or sexual assault access VA benefits. The VA shall establish a national task force to address domestic violence and sexual assault among veterans and conduct a study to determine the scope of the problem.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2018
Information Transparency & Personal Data Control Act This bill requires the Federal Trade Commission to establish requirements related to privacy, security, and consent for entities providing services to the public that collect, store, process, use, or otherwise control sensitive personal information.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2018
Continuing Our Mission in Puerto Rico to Optimize and Modernize Infrastructure and Sustain Obligations Act or the COMPROMISO Act This bill directs that the federal share of assistance, including direct federal assistance, provided for Puerto Rico in connection with Hurricanes Irma and Maria under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act with respect to a major disaster (specifically, regarding essential assistance, hazard mitigation, repair, restoration, and replacement of damaged facilities, debris removal, federal assistance to individuals and households, and public assistance program alternative procedures) shall be 100%.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2018
Reaffirms the bipartisan commitment of the United States to promote the safety, health, and well-being of refugees, including through U.S. resettlement for those who cannot return home. Urges President Trump and his administration to affirm the importance of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program and to make a presidential determination for FY2019 that the admission of at least 110,000 refugees is justified. (Under the program, such determination establishes the overall admissions levels and regional allocations of all refugees for an upcoming fiscal year.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2018
Grants for Renewable Energy Education for the Nation Act or the GREEN Act This bill authorizes the Department of Energy to award grants to partnerships of local educational agencies, postsecondary institutions, and clean and renewable energy industry representatives to: (1) develop programs of study focused on emerging careers and jobs in the fields of clean and renewable energy, energy efficiency, climate change mitigation, and climate change adaptation; and (2) promote development of career and technical education facilities that are energy efficient and promote the use of renewable energy practices.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2018
United States Territorial Relief Act of 2018 This bill establishes a process under which Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories may terminate certain debts if they meet eligibility criteria. The bill allows territories to terminate their public, unsecured debt if they meet two of three criteria: the population of the territory has decreased by more than 5% over 10 years, the territory received major federal disaster assistance, and the territory's per capita debt exceeds $15,000. The bill also provides funding that a special master must allocate to certain creditors whose debts were discharged under this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2018
Puerto Rico Integrity in Medicare Advantage Act This bill temporarily establishes geographic adjustments for certain Medicare Advantage payment formulations, and specifies that a certain percentage of corresponding payment increases must be directed toward compensating providers in Puerto Rico.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2018
Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation of: one Congressional Gold Medal to Katherine Johnson, in recognition of her service to the United States as a mathematician; one Congressional Gold Medal to Dr. Christine Darden, in recognition of her service to the United States as an aeronautical engineer; two Congressional Gold Medals in commemoration of the lives of Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, in recognition of their service to the United States during the Space Race; and one Congressional Gold Medal in recognition of all of the women who served as computers, mathematicians, and engineers at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from the 1930s to the 1970s.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2018
This joint resolution nullifies a rule issued on August 3, 2018, by the Department of Treasury, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services regarding short-term, limited-duration health insurance plans. Short-term, limited-duration health insurance plans are plans that may only offer coverage for a limited amount of time under law and that are exempt from the market requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (e.g., coverage of individuals with preexisting conditions). The rule increases the maximum authorized duration of such plans from less than 3 months (including renewals) to an initial maximum duration of less than 12 months (with a total duration of up to 36 months, including renewals). The rule took effect October 2, 2018.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2018
Recognizes: (1) the celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month; and (2) the integral role of Latinos and their manifold heritage in the economy, culture, and identity of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2018
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 7521 Paula Drive in Tampa, Florida, as the "Major Andreas O'Keeffe Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2018
Fracking Disclosure and Safety Act This bill establishes requirements governing oil or gas operations, including by (1) reestablishing requirements governing the use of hydraulic fracturing under oil and gas leases for federal lands; and (2) eliminating certain exemptions for oil and gas operations from environmental requirements, such as requirements concerning stormwater runoff, hazardous air pollutants, solid waste disposal, and drinking water sources.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2018
Safe to Tell Act of 2018 This bill authorizes the Department of Justice to make grants to states for establishing anonymous school threat reporting programs.
United States · United States Congress · 5 September 2018
House Intern Pay Act of 2018 This bill establishes an allowance in each office of Members of the House of Representatives for compensation of interns who serve in the Member's office during a calendar year.
United States · United States Congress · 31 August 2018
Alternatives to Detention Act of 2018 This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish programs for providing alternatives to detaining individuals under the immigration laws, including community-based supervision and community support programs. DHS may not detain and must place in an alternative detention program individuals deemed members of a vulnerable population (e.g., asylum seekers, pregnant or nursing women, or crime victims), a parent of a child under age 18, or a caregiver. DHS must establish the position of Coordinator of Alternatives to Detention and Family Reunification to coordinate the use of alternative detention programs and to reunify parents with children separated from them.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2018
Offshore Wind for Territories Act This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to authorize offshore wind development in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone adjacent to U.S. territories. The bill also establishes the Coral Reef Conservation Fund for the Department of Commerce to carry out the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000, including to preserve, sustain, and restore the condition of coral reef ecosystems.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2018
3D Printed Gun Safety Act of 2018 This bill amends the federal criminal code to make it unlawful to intentionally publish digital instructions for programming a three-dimensional printer to make a firearm.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2018
Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act of 2018 This bill addresses harmful algal blooms and hypoxia, including to: (1) increase the authorization of appropriations for the national harmful algal bloom and hypoxia program and the action strategy of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia through FY2023, and (2) address harmful algal blooms and hypoxia in the Greater Everglades region of Florida. An algal bloom is a rapid growth of algae that may create toxic or hypoxic (severely low-oxygen) conditions that are harmful to humans, animals, aquatic ecosystems, and the economy.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 501 South Kirkman Road in Orlando, Florida, as the "Napoleon 'Nap' Ford Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
No Guns for Abusers Act of 2018 This bill authorizes the Department of Justice (DOJ) to make grants for state and local governments to implement procedures to remove firearms from individuals who are charged with or convicted of domestic violence or subject to a domestic violence protective order. Additionally, the bill sets forth the following requirements: the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) must report to Congress on best practices for implementing such procedures, the NIJ must contract with nongovernmental entities to study the comparative effectiveness of such procedures, and DOJ must submit federal legislative recommendations in accordance with the best practices.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Reunite Every Unaccompanied Newborn Infant, Toddler and other children Expeditiously Act or the REUNITE Act This bill directs the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) and Health and Human Services (HHS), after consultation with humanitarian organizations, child welfare agencies, and states bordering Mexico, to promulgate and publish a rule describing efforts that DHS and HHS will undertake to aid apprehended parents or legal guardians in locating and reuniting with any children (under age 18 with no permanent immigration status) separated from them at or near the port of entry, or within 100 miles of the border. DHS, HHS, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) must provide apprehended parents or legal guardians separated from their children with written notice, in a language understandable to them, of any rules or guidance that may assist them in locating and reuniting with their children. The bill permits DHS and HHS to use DNA testing to determine family relationships subject to certain requirements, after using other commonly-used techniques for determining such relationships. DHS must establish secure alternative programs that incorporate case management services in each DHS field office to ensure appearances by alien parents and children at immigration proceedings and public safety and to provide for community-based alternatives to detention. DHS, DOJ, and HHS shall establish an interagency Office for Locating and Reuniting Children with Parents for facilitating the reunification of children and apprehended parents or legal guardians after entering the United States. The bill requires DOJ to appoint counsel, free of charge, for children and vulnerable aliens (e.g., persons with disabilities and victims of abuse, torture, or violence) in immigration proceedings. The bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to limit bonds for detained aliens to $1,500, except for aliens who have committed an aggravated felony (as defined by the INA).
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2018 This bill revises and reauthorizes through FY2023 various programs and activities under the Violence Against Women Act that seek to prevent and respond to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. Among other things, the bill also authorizes new programs, makes changes to federal firearms laws, and establishes new protections to promote housing stability and economic security for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Reducing Obesity in Youth Act of 2018 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Administration for Children and Families, to award grants to promote healthy eating and physical activity among children under six years old in early care and education settings. HHS must track the obesity prevention policies and practices of early care and education programs.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Aim Higher Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reauthorize and revise federal financial aid programs for postsecondary education and institutions of higher education.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act This bill establishes the National Park Service and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund and requires 50% of all energy development revenues for FY2019-FY2023 to be deposited into such fund. Amounts deposited in the fund must not exceed $1.3 billion for any fiscal year and must be used for meeting high-priority deferred maintenance needs of the National Park Service.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Funding Attorneys for Indigent Removal (FAIR) Proceedings Act This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the appointment of counsel, at government expense, for aliens in immigration proceedings and to automatically provide to such aliens a complete copy of the their immigration file in the possession of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS must also facilitate access to counsel and legal orientation programs for all aliens in DHS detention facilities. The bill also establishes the Immigration Counsel Account to collect fees for providing access to counsel when required or authorized by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Higher Education Dream Act of 2018 This bill prohibits institutions of higher education that receive federal student aid from discriminating or taking adverse action against students based on their immigration status, including charging out-of-state tuition to students who would qualify as a resident of the state.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Authorizes specified committees of the House of Representatives to intervene on behalf of the House in the case of Texas v. United States in order to defend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Authorizes the Office of General Counsel of the House, under the supervision of such committees, to represent them in the intervention.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2018
Marijuana Data Collection Act This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services, in coordination with the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, and relevant state agencies, to enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences in order to study the effects of marijuana legalization in states that have legalized marijuana for medicinal or non-medicinal use.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2018
Augmenting Research and Educational Sites to Ensure Agriculture Remains Cutting-Edge and Helpful Act or the AG RESEARCH Act This bill amends the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 to provide funding for maintenance at agricultural research facilities. The bill requires the Department of Agriculture to: (1) establish a grant program within the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to provide agricultural research facilities with a federal share of the cost for the alteration, modernization, renovation, or remodeling of the research facilities or the equipment necessary for agricultural research; and (2) use specified Commodity Credit Corporation funds to provide direct payments to research facilities of the Agricultural Research Service for addressing deferred maintenance.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2018
National Urban Search and Rescue Response System Reauthorization Act This bill amends the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 to reauthorize for FY2018-FY2022 the Urban Search and Rescue Response System.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2018
America's Natural Treasures of Immeasurable Quality Unite, Inspire, and Together Improve the Economies of States Act of 2018 or the ANTIQUITIES Act of 2018. This bill directs the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to administer each specified national monument under their joint or exclusive jurisdiction, including the Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Gold Butte, Cascade-Siskiyou National Monuments and the Rose Atoll and Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monuments in accordance with: (1) the one or more presidential proclamations that apply to the applicable covered monument; (2) any Act of Congress enacted before December 4, 2017, that provides for an adjustment to the boundary or administration of such monument; and (3) this bill. The bill establishes the National Monument Enhancement Fund to furnish funding: (1) to such federal agencies to develop management plans for their national monuments that were designated under current federal law, (2) for federal acquisition and development of certain land and other areas, and (3) to develop and enhance recreational infrastructure on such designated lands. The bill designates: (1) specified BLM lands within the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte National Monuments in New Mexico and in the Gold Butte National Conservation Area in Nevada as wilderness and as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System; and (2) approximately 100 acres of BLM land in New Mexico as a potential wilderness area and, when specified conditions have been met, for incorporation into the Robledo Mountains Wilderness.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2018
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should take all appropriate measures to ensure that the U.S. Postal Service remains an independent establishment of the federal government and is not subject to privatization.
![Official portrait of Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/115_rp_fl_9_soto_darren_200.jpg)