United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2021
United States Climate Leadership in International Mitigation, Adaptation, and Technology Enhancement Act of 2021 This bill sets out priorities for climate action, clean energy, energy diplomacy, reduced deforestation, and related U.S. foreign policy. The Department of State must incorporate climate action and climate diplomacy across all bureaus and U.S. missions abroad. In addition, the bill directs increased U.S. involvement in international climate change agreements and activities, including the Paris Agreement (a climate treaty adopted in 2015), the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol (amends a treaty on reducing ozone-depleting compounds to include hydrofluorocarbons) and efforts to reduce short-lived climate pollutants, the Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation, and Mission Innovation and the Clean Energy Ministerial (global initiatives to advance clean energy technologies and policies). In addition, the bill directs (1) increased U.S. engagement in international economic forums (e.g., G-7 and the World Economic Forum) related to climate action, including with a specific focus on China; and (2) efforts by the U.S. International Finance Development Corporation and U.S. representatives at international financial institutions to prioritize renewable energy projects and advance other climate-related policy objectives. The bill also establishes foreign assistance, financing mechanisms, and other programs to support developing countries transition to renewable energy and reduce carbon emissions. Furthermore, the bill outlines climate-related foreign policy and programs for particular regions (the Arctic, sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, and North America) and countries (China, India, Brazil, and Indonesia). The bill also addresses climate change and its effects on women and girls.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2021
Climate Risk Disclosure Act of 2021 This bill directs the Securities and Exchange Commission to require an issuer of securities to annually disclose information regarding climate change-related risks posed to the issuer, including an issuer's strategies and actions to mitigate these risks. Specifically, issuers must report their direct and indirect greenhouse-gas emissions and disclose their fossil fuel-related assets.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2021
United States Cadet Nurse Corps Service Recognition Act of 2021 This bill recognizes service as a member of the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps between July 1, 1943, and December 31, 1948, as active duty service. The active duty designation entitles qualifying individuals to certain benefits afforded to veterans, such as burial benefits (not including interment at Arlington National Cemetery) and honorary veteran status. Under the bill, the Department of Defense (DOD) must issue individuals who served in the corps during the specified period a discharge from their service under honorable conditions if such a discharge is warranted based on the duration and nature of the service. Such individuals are not entitled to Department of Veterans Affairs benefits aside from those related to burials and memorials. The bill also authorizes DOD to produce a service medal or other commendation, memorial plaque, or grave marker to honor the individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2021
Green New Deal for Public Housing Act This bill addresses energy efficiency and workforce development in the context of public housing. Specifically, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) must award grants to public housing agencies (PHAs) and other eligible entities under a variety of new programs, including programs for facilitating workforce development and high-income employment transition; conducting physical needs assessments and subsequent energy efficiency retrofits; and making upgrades, replacements, and improvements for energy efficiency, building electrification, and water quality upgrades. Recipients of these grants must provide relocation assistance for residents who are displaced during construction and must ensure that they can return to their homes once retrofitting is completed. A certain percentage of the employment positions generated by these grant programs and other specified federal grant programs must be filled by low-income individuals, and a specified percentage of certain contracts associated with these programs must be awarded to businesses owned by residents of public housing. The bill also repeals a provision that prohibits a PHA from using HUD funds to construct or operate new public housing units if doing so would result in the PHA owning or operating more units than it did on October 1, 1999.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2021
Big Cat Public Safety Act This bill revises requirements governing the trade of big cats (i.e., species of lion, tiger, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, or cougar or any hybrid of such species). Specifically, it revises restrictions on the possession and exhibition of big cats, including to restrict direct contact between the public and big cats.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
This joint resolution requires either the advice and consent of the Senate or an act of Congress before the President may suspend, denounce, or withdraw the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty. No funds shall be authorized or appropriated to support any efforts to withdraw from the treaty without the Senate's approval by a two-thirds vote or an act of Congress. The President shall notify Congress in writing of any effort to suspend, denounce, or withdraw from the treaty no later than 48 hours after such action. This joint resolution also authorizes the Senate Legal Counsel and the General Counsel of the House of Representatives to represent Congress in judicial proceedings related to actions that are inconsistent with this resolution.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Stopping Activities Underpinning Development In Weapons of Mass Destruction Act or the SAUDI WMD Act This bill establishes measures to inhibit the development of nuclear weapons by Saudi Arabia. Specifically, the bill restricts the sale of specified munitions items to Saudi Arabia if, in the last three fiscal years, Saudi Arabia has taken certain steps towards developing nuclear weapons. Further, the bill requires the President to submit to Congress a written determination detailing (1) whether any foreign person knowingly engaged in the trade of specified weapons subject to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) with Saudia Arabia in the last three fiscal years, and (2) the sanctions the President has imposed or intends to impose against those persons. (The MTCR is an informal political understanding among states that seek to limit the proliferation of missiles and missile technology.) The bill also requires the Department of State and the Department of Energy to submit a report on MTCR compliance and a strategy to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and missiles in the Middle East.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2021 This bill prohibits the use of federal funds to conduct a first-use nuclear strike unless Congress expressly authorizes such a strike pursuant to a declaration of war. A first-use nuclear strike is an attack using nuclear weapons against an enemy that did not first launch a nuclear strike against the United States, its territories, or its allies.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2021 This bill generally prohibits a federal criminal defendant from asserting, as a defense, that the nonviolent sexual advance of an individual or a perception or belief of the gender, gender identify or expression, or sexual orientation of an individual excuses or justifies conduct or mitigates the severity of an offense.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Choose Medicare Act This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish public health insurance plans and addresses health insurance costs. Such public plans must be offered on health insurance exchanges and (1) meet the requirements of a qualified health plan; (2) cover benefits at the gold plan level; and (3) cover reproductive services, including abortions. Additionally, the bill makes a series of changes related to health insurance costs, including requiring employers to refer employees to health care navigators to assist with enrollment, establishing an annual limit on out-of-pocket costs for services under Medicare, providing HHS with the authority to negotiate prices under the Medicare prescription drug benefit program, expanding the premium-assistance credit by benchmarking the credit amount to the second-lowest cost gold plan and increasing the income threshold for eligibility, requiring qualified health plans to reduce cost sharing for low-income plan holders, providing funding for states to provide reinsurance to health insurance issuers and to assist individuals with out-of-pocket costs for plans offered through health insurance exchanges, applying the premium rate-setting requirements to large group health plans, and requiring HHS or states to take corrective actions to address unreasonable premium rates set by insurance issuers.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Investor Choice Act of 2021 This bill prohibits broker-dealers and investment advisers from including mandatory arbitration, forum selection restrictions, or bans on class action suits in a customer or client agreement. Issuers of securities are also prohibited from mandating arbitration in a shareholder agreement.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Rohingya Genocide Determination Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of State to report to Congress an assessment of the persecution of the Rohingya, a predominantly Muslim group in Burma (Myanmar), by Burma's military and security forces, and whether the situation constitutes genocide under U.S. law. The report shall also contain (1) a description of U.S. government actions to ensure that those responsible are held accountable, and (2) recommendations on further actions to take to ensure accountability and to prevent further mass atrocity crimes in Burma.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Guaranteed Refugee Admission Ceiling Enhancement Act or the GRACE Act This bill establishes that the maximum number of refugees admitted each fiscal year shall be no less than 125,000 and that the maximum number shall be treated as the numerical goal for refugee admissions for the applicable fiscal year. The President may set a higher number if it is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest. Currently, the number admitted each fiscal year may not exceed 50,000 unless the President determines that a higher number is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest. The bill directs the President to take into consideration information from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees when establishing the maximum admission number and making certain other related decisions. The President shall report to Congress quarterly on (1) the number of refugees admitted during the preceding quarter, (2) the number of aliens who were security-cleared during the preceding quarter, (3) a plan to reach the numerical goal for admitted refugees for that fiscal year, and (4) other related information.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Healthy Families Act This bill provides for paid and unpaid sick leave for employees to meet their own medical needs and those of their families. It requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide their employees with at least one hour of earned paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 56 hours of paid sick leave in a year. An employer with fewer than 15 employees may also provide the same amount of paid sick leave, but may opt out of such requirement, in which case such employer must provide its employees at least 56 hours of unpaid leave in a year. An employee may use sick leave for absences (1) resulting from a physical or mental illness, injury or medical condition; (2) resulting from obtaining professional medical diagnosis or care, or preventive medical care; (3) to care for a child, parent, spouse, a domestic partner, or other blood or close relative; and (4) resulting from domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The bill makes it unlawful for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of an employee's right to accrue sick leave as provided by this bill. An employee may take legal action to enforce the right to sick leave granted by this bill and the Department of Labor must investigate complaints of violations of the requirements of this bill. Labor is authorized to conduct a public awareness campaign to educate and inform the public of the requirements for paid sick leave provided by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 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 · 15 April 2021
Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act This bill provides guidance related to veterans and medical marijuana that shall be effective for five years. Specifically, the bill authorizes (1) a veteran to use, possess, or transport medical marijuana in accordance with applicable state or Native American tribal law; (2) a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) physician to discuss with a veteran the use of medical marijuana as a treatment if the physician is in a state or on tribal land that authorizes such treatment; or (3) a VA physician to recommend, complete forms for, or register veterans for participation in a medical marijuana treatment program in accordance with applicable state or tribal law. The bill requires the VA to report on (1) the effects of medical marijuana on veterans in pain; and (2) the relationship between state-approved medical marijuana treatment programs, program access, and opioid use and abuse reduction.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
Tax Fairness for Workers Act This bill allows an above-the-line tax deduction for union dues and expenses. (An above-the-line deduction is subtracted from gross income and is available whether or not a taxpayer itemizes other deductions.) The bill also reinstates the miscellaneous itemized tax deduction for unreimbursed expenses attributable to the performance of services as an employee (Under current law, all miscellaneous itemized deductions are suspended through 2025).
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2021
This resolution designates April 17, 2021, through April 25, 2021, as National Park Week. The resolution also encourages the people of the United States and the world to responsibly visit, experience, and support the treasured national parks of the United States while protecting public health during the coronavirus pandemic.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2021
Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2021 This bill provides federal workers' compensation to firefighters who contract certain illnesses as a result of their service. Specifically, the bill provides that (1) heart disease, lung disease, and specified cancers of federal employees employed in fire protection activities for at least 5 years are presumed to be proximately caused by such employment if the employee is diagnosed with the disease within 10 years of employment; and (2) the disability or death of the employee due to such disease is presumed to result from personal injury sustained in the performance of duty. These presumptions also apply to fire protection employees (regardless of the length of employment) who contract any communicable disease at the center of a designated pandemic or any chronic infectious disease that the Department of Labor determines is related to job-related hazards. An employee in fire protection activities is a firefighter, paramedic, emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance personnel, or hazardous material worker, who (1) is trained in fire suppression; (2) has the legal authority and responsibility to engage in fire suppression; (3) is engaged in the prevention, control, and extinguishment of fires or response to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk; and (4) performs such activities as a primary responsibility.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2021
Keep It in the Ground Act of 2021 This bill eliminates new fossil fuel production projects on federal public land and waters. Specifically, it prohibits the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) from issuing, renewing, reinstating, or extending any nonproducing lease, or issuing any authorization for the exploration or production of fossil fuel on the Outer Continental Shelf. BOEM must also cancel any lease issued in the Beaufort Sea, Cook Inlet, or Chukchi Sea (three of the five bodies of water that encompass the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf). Further, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) may not issue, renew, reinstate, or extend any nonproducing lease for the exploration or production of any onshore fossil fuels on land subject to the Mineral Leasing Act. The bill provides for exceptions if there is an imminent national security threat that would be significantly reduced by granting an exception. In addition, BOEM and the BLM may allow a nonproducing lease to be renewed or extended if (1) the lease contract was signed before enactment of this bill, and (2) it is determined that giving effect to any provision of this bill is likely to lead to a judicial ruling that there was a material breach of the nonproducing lease contract.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2021
Keep Americans Safe Act This bill establishes a new criminal offense for the import, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device (LCAFD). The bill does not prohibit certain conduct with respect to an LCAFD, including the following: importation, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession related to certain law enforcement efforts, or authorized tests or experiments; importation, sale, transfer, or possession related to securing nuclear materials; and possession by a retired law enforcement officer. The bill permits continued possession of, but prohibits sale or transfer of, a grandfathered LCAFD. Newly manufactured LCAFDs must display serial number identification and the date of manufacture. Additionally, the bill allows a state or local government to use Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program funds to compensate individuals who surrender an LCAFD under a buy-back program.
United States · United States Congress · 13 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 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 · 13 April 2021
Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill provides for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to the troops from the United States and the Philippines who defended Bataan and Corregidor, in recognition of their personal sacrifice and service during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
This resolution honors the memory of U.S. Capitol Police Officer William Francis "Billy" Evans for the selfless acts of heroism he displayed on April 2, 2021.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
This resolution recognizes the opportunity for Black Maternal Health Week to raise national awareness of the state of Black maternal health in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
Uyghur Human Rights Protection Act This bill designates certain residents of the Xinjiang region in China as prioritized refugees of special humanitarian concern and addresses other related issues. This priority designation shall apply to Uyghurs and members of other predominately Turkic or Muslim ethnic groups (and the spouses, children, and parents of such individuals) who (1) reside in or fled Xinjiang and who suffered persecution on account of their religious or ethnic identity, or have a well-founded fear of such persecution; or (2) have been formally charged, detained, or convicted for certain peaceful actions related to Xinjiang. Such an individual may not be denied admission into the United States based primarily on an arrest or other adverse government action due to that individual's participation in religious, cultural, or protest activities. The bill also waives certain immigration-related requirements for such individuals. Furthermore, a Chinese national seeking refugee status shall be considered to have been persecuted on account of political opinion if the Chinese government revoked that individual's residency in any region of China because the individual submitted a nonfrivolous application for a U.S. immigration benefit. Similarly, if the Chinese government revoked a Chinese national's citizenship, nationality, or residency because that individual filed for a U.S. immigration benefit, that revocation shall constitute a changed circumstance. (Among other things, a changed circumstance may allow an individual who has been rejected for asylum to apply again.)
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act of 20 21 This bill makes it illegal to possess, buy, sell, or transport shark fins or any product containing shark fins, except for certain dogfish fins. A person may possess a shark fin that was lawfully taken consistent with a license or permit under certain circumstances. Penalties are imposed for violations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The maximum civil penalty for each violation shall be $100,000, or the fair market value of the shark fins involved, whichever is greater.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
This resolution calls on the President and the Department of Health and Human Services to take administrative action to lower U.S. prescription drug prices to align with the prices in other economically comparable countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2021
Immigrants' Mental Health Act of 2021 This bill directs Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to take steps to address mental health issues among immigrants and CBP agents and officers. It also restricts the sharing of mental health information for use in certain immigration proceedings. CBP shall develop training to enable its agents and officers to (1) identify mental health issues and risk factors in immigrants and refugees, (2) provide crisis intervention using a trauma-informed approach, and (3) better manage work-related stress and psychological pressures. CBP shall assign at least one qualified mental or behavioral health expert to each Border Patrol station, port of entry, checkpoint, forward operating base, secondary inspection area, and short-term custody facility. The Department of Health and Human Services may not provide to the Department of Homeland Security information about the mental health of an alien if the information will be used for (1) an asylum determination, (2) an immigration hearing, or (3) a deportation hearing.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2021
Remove the Stain Act This bill rescinds each Medal of Honor awarded for acts that occurred on December 29, 1890, at Wounded Knee Creek, Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota. The bill requires the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard to remove the names of those award recipients from the Medal of Honor Roll.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 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 · 25 March 2021
This resolution (1) designates July 2021 as National Blueberry Month; and (2) recognizes the contributions of blueberry growers in the United States and their families, and that purchasing blueberries grown in the United States supports farmers, jobs, communities, and the economy of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
This joint resolution nullifies the final rule issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency titled National Banks and Federal Savings Associations as Lenders and published on October 30, 2020. The rule requires that to be considered a lender, a national bank or federal saving association must, as of the date of origination of the loan (1) be named as the lender in the loan agreement, or (2) fund the loan.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
Climate Change Education Act This bill declares that the evidence for human-induced climate change is overwhelming and undeniable. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) must establish a Climate Change Education Program to increase the climate literacy of the United States by broadening the understanding of human-induced climate change, including possible consequences, disproportionate impacts of such consequences, and potential solutions; apply the latest scientific and technological discoveries to provide learning opportunities to people of all ages; and help people understand and promote implementation of new technologies, programs, and incentives related to climate change, climate adaptation and mitigation, climate resilience, climate justice, and environmental justice. NOAA must also establish a grant program for climate change education.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
Korematsu-Takai Civil Liberties Protection Act of 2021 This bill modifies the detention authority of the United States. Specifically, it prohibits detention or imprisonment based solely on an actual or perceived protected characteristic of an individual. A protected characteristic includes each of the following: race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, and any additional characteristic that the Department of Justice determines to be a protected characteristic.
United States · United States Congress · 25 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 · 25 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 · 25 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 · 25 March 2021
Taiwan Relations Reinforcement Act of 2021 This bill contains provisions pertaining to the U.S.-Taiwan relationship. The director of the American Institute in Taiwan's Taipei office shall be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. (In 1979, the United States established diplomatic relations with China and ended formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The American Institute in Taiwan is a private organization that represents U.S. interests in Taiwan and provides consular services.) U.S. government departments and agencies (1) may not formally or informally recognize China's claims of sovereignty over Taiwan without the assent of Taiwan's people, as expressed through the democratic process; (2) shall treat Taiwan's elected government as the legitimate representative of Taiwan's people; and (3) shall end the practice of referring to Taiwan's government as authorities. The Department of State shall establish the U.S.-Taiwan Cultural Exchange Foundation, which shall work with schools to send U.S. high school and university students to Taiwan to study the Chinese language, politics, and other subjects. In addition, the State Department shall develop and implement a strategy to respond to Chinese government attempts to use misinformation, media manipulation, economic coercion, and other strategies against Taiwan or persons in Taiwan. The bill also directs the President to establish an interagency Taiwan policy task force, which shall annually report to Congress a plan for enhancing U.S.-Taiwan relations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
Assuring Regular Consultation To Have Indigenous Voices Effectively Solicited Act This bill establishes requirements for tribal consultation prior to the sale or transfer of certain federal civilian real property. Federal civilian real property generally refers to federal real property assets, including public buildings, occupied and improved grounds, leased space, or other physical structures under the custody and control of a federal agency. Specifically, a federal agency must consult with tribal governments prior to the sale or transfer of certain federal civilian real property if the proposed sale or transfer would affect a tribe's access to federal agency services. Further, the bill prohibits the property from being sold or transferred if the sale or transfer would substantially reduce or eliminate a tribe's access to these services.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
Investing in Cures Before Missiles Act of 2021 or the ICBM Act This bill addresses the transfer and use of funds intended for defense programs. Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to transfer $1 billion of unobligated balances intended for its ground-based strategic deterrent program to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease for research on the development of a universal coronavirus vaccine. Next, the bill requires the Department of Energy to transfer unobligated balances for the W87-1 warhead modification program administered by the National Nuclear Security Administration to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to research and combat emerging and zoonotic infectious diseases. The bill prohibits the use of funds authorized for FY2022 for the ground-based strategic deterrent program or the W87-1 warhead modification program. Finally, the bill requires DOD to enter into a contract with the National Academy of Sciences to study extending to 2050 the life of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
This resolution designates the first week of April 2021 as National Asbestos Awareness Week. It also urges the Surgeon General to warn and educate people about asbestos exposure, which may be hazardous to their health.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
This resolution expresses the sense of the Senate that access to reliable and clean drinking water is critically important to the health and welfare of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Further, the resolution calls upon the federal government to provide water access to tribal members and communities.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2021
This bill makes changes to facilitate data sharing between the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and programs that subsidize communication services to verify eligibility for applicable programs. Specifically, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must award grants to states and tribes for establishing or modifying connections between databases with information regarding benefit programs (e.g., SNAP) and the National Lifeline Eligibility Verifier to verify eligibility for the Lifeline program (which subsidizes telephone and internet services for low-income individuals) and the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (which subsidizes broadband services for those who suffered income loss during the COVID-19 pandemic and other eligible households). The bill also reauthorizes through FY2026 the fund that supports the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program. In addition, the FCC must establish an automated connection to share data between the National Lifeline Eligibility Verifier and the National Accuracy Clearinghouse for SNAP. The FCC must coordinate with the Department of Agriculture to establish the connection.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2021
Water for Conservation and Farming Act This bill establishes a funding source for certain water resources development projects in western states. The bill also reauthorizes and expands existing water resources development programs, as well as establishes new programs. Specifically, the bill establishes the Bureau of Reclamation Infrastructure Fund to fund water-related programs, including water reclamation and reuse projects, dam safety projects, and the WaterSMART program (which provides assistance to eligible government entities to increase water supply). Each year from FY2031-FY2061, the Department of the Treasury must deposit $300 million of revenues into this fund that would otherwise be deposited into the Reclamation Fund (which currently funds irrigation works in western states). The bill also expands the allowable uses for grants under the WaterSMART program. Next, the bill revises the Reclamation Climate Change and Water program (which assesses the impact of climate change on water supplies) by requiring Reclamation to develop a strategy to address sustaining native biodiversity during periods of drought. The bill also reauthorizes through FY2028 the Fisheries Restoration and Irrigation Mitigation program (which funds fish passage projects in certain areas that drain into the Pacific Ocean). Finally, the bill establishes new programs directed at western states to provide assistance to agricultural producers to create and maintain waterbird and shorebird habitats, award grants to eligible government entities and nonprofit conservation organizations for habitat restoration projects that improve watershed health, and prepare plans to sustain the survival of critically important fisheries during periods of drought.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2021
No Junk Plans Act This bill nullifies a rule 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 · 24 March 2021
This resolution condemns and denounces all forms of anti-Asian sentiment, including those related to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019), and calls on federal law enforcement officials, working with state and local agencies, to take specified steps. The resolution calls on federal officials to expeditiously investigate and document all credible reports of hate crimes, harassment, bullying, and threats against the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities; the Attorney General to work with state and local agencies and Asian American and Pacific Islander community-based organizations to prevent discrimination and to expand culturally competent and linguistically appropriate education campaigns on public reporting of hate crimes; and the Department of Health and Human Services to issue guidance describing best practices to mitigate racially discriminatory language in describing the pandemic. The resolution recommits the United States to serving as a model for the world in building a more inclusive, diverse, and tolerant society by (1) prioritizing language access and inclusivity in communication practices, and (2) combating misinformation and discrimination that puts Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders at risk.
![Official portrait of Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m001176_200.jpg)