United States · United States Congress · 11 December 2025
Keeping All Students Safe Act This bill prohibits the use of seclusion and limits the use of physical restraint in schools and Head Start programs that receive federal funding. Specifically, the bill prohibits the use of seclusion , which is the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area from which the student is physically prevented from leaving. The term does not include a time out, which may involve separating the student from others in a non-locked setting. The bill prohibits the use of mechanical or chemical restraints or physical restraints that restrict breathing or are life threatening. The bill outlines the requirements for the use of physical restraint, including that the student's behavior must pose an imminent danger of serious physical injury to the student or other individual. Each state must ensure that a sufficient number of program personnel are trained and certified by a state-approved crisis intervention training program. Additionally, each program must establish procedures to follow after an incident involving physical restraint. Further, the bill establishes enforcement provisions, including a private right of action for a student who has been subjected to unlawful seclusion or restraint. The Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services must withhold payments from a program for unlawful seclusion or restraint. Finally, the bill requires each state educational agency (SEA) to establish, implement, and enforce policies and procedures required by the bill. It also creates a grant program to assist SEAs with these activities.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2025
Justice for Breonna Taylor Act This bill prohibits no-knock warrants, which generally permit law enforcement officers to enter a premises without first identifying their authority and purpose. Specifically, it requires federal law enforcement officers to provide notice of their authority and purpose before executing a warrant. State and local law enforcement agencies that receive funds from the Department of Justice must execute warrants that require the serving officer to provide notice of his or her authority and purpose before forcibly entering a premises.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2025
21st Century STEM for Girls and Underrepresented Minorities Act This bill directs the Department of Education to make grants to local educational agencies to pay the costs of carrying out science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education activities for girls and underrepresented minorities.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 2025
Keep SNAP and WIC Funded Act of 2025 This bill provides FY2026 appropriations for the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to continue operating the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); and a related block grant program if there is a lapse in FY2026 appropriations for USDA. Specifically, the bill provides appropriations to USDA for any period in which legislation to provide FY2026 interim continuing appropriations or full-year appropriations for USDA has not been enacted. If such a lapse in appropriations occurs, the bill provides the appropriations that are necessary to continue providing uninterrupted SNAP benefits, providing consolidated block grants to Puerto Rico and American Samoa for nutrition assistance programs, and carrying out WIC without interruption. In addition, the bill provides appropriations to pay any benefits under these programs that were missed on or after September 30, 2025, and before this bill is enacted. The appropriations for these purposes are available until the earlier of (1) the enactment into law of legislation to provide FY2026 appropriations for USDA (including continuing appropriations), or (2) September 30, 2026. The bill also requires USDA to use the funds provided by this bill to reimburse state agencies for costs that were incurred to carry out these programs during a lapse in appropriations, to the extent that the programs were carried out in accordance with federal law (including regulations) during the lapse.
United States · United States Congress · 14 October 2025
Healthy Meals Help Kids Learn Act of 2025 This bill permanently increases the federal reimbursement rates for the school lunch and breakfast programs of the Department of Agriculture. Specifically, beginning November 1, 2025, the bill provides an additional 45 cents per lunch served in the National School Lunch Program and an additional 28 cents per breakfast served in the School Breakfast Program. These amounts must be adjusted annually for inflation beginning July 1, 2026.
United States · United States Congress · 14 October 2025
This resolution requests that the President submit certain information to Congress regarding a reduction in force or the withholding of pay due to the lapse in appropriations (i.e., government shutdown) that began on October 1, 2025. Specifically, the resolution requests that the President submit to Congress any and all documents and communications related to any proposed reduction in force at a federal agency related to the lapse in appropriations, efforts to create a legal determination at the Office of Management and Budget finding or suggesting that the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019 does not create a self-executing requirement that furloughed federal employees must receive pay for the period in which they were furloughed during a lapse in appropriations immediately after the lapse in appropriations ends, and efforts or plans to withhold pay for the period of the lapse of appropriations for excepted or furloughed federal or District of Columbia employees. The resolution also requests that the President submit to Congress any documents or communications between the President's office, the Vice President's office, the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Special Counsel, and the Merit System Protection Board regarding these topics.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2025
This bill requires the federal government to reimburse state agencies that use state funds to carry out operations necessary to maintain participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) during a lapse in discretionary appropriations (i.e., government shutdown). WIC provides nutrition-rich foods, nutrition education, and health care and social services referrals to eligible low-income women, infants, and children.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2025
Voter Purge Protection Act This bill prohibits a state from removing registrants from the official list of eligible voters unless it meets certain verification and notice requirements. Specifically, the bill prohibits a state from removing a registrant from the official list of eligible voters unless it verifies, on the basis of objective and reliable evidence, that the registrant is ineligible to vote in federal elections. Further, a state is prohibited from considering failure to vote in an election or failure to respond to a notice as evidence of ineligibility to vote. Additionally, the bill requires a state to provide individual registrants who are removed with a notice, which must include the grounds for the removal and information on contesting the removal. Public notice must be provided after conducting any general program to remove the names of ineligible voters.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2025
Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act of 2025 This bill provides back pay to employees of federal contractors who lost pay due to a lapse in appropriations (i.e., government shutdown) in FY2026. Specifically, the bill provides appropriations for federal agencies that are subject to a lapse in appropriations in FY2026 to adjust the price of contracts to compensate federal contractors for providing back pay to employees who were affected by the lapse in appropriations. The agencies must adjust the price of any contract for which the contractor stopped, suspended, delayed, or interrupted all or part of the work under the contract due to the lapse in appropriations. The price adjustment must compensate the contractor for reasonable costs incurred to (1) compensate employees who were furloughed or laid off, were not working, or experienced a reduction of hours or compensation due to the lapse in appropriations; or (2) restore paid leave taken by employees during the lapse in appropriations if the contractor required or permitted employees to use paid leave as a result of the lapse in appropriations. The maximum amount of weekly compensation of an employee for which an adjustment may be made under this bill may not exceed the lesser of (1) the employee's actual weekly compensation, or (2) $1,442 (or a lesser amount pro-rated for an employee who works less than 40 hours per week). The bill also requires the Office of Federal Procurement Policy to submit a report to Congress on the adjustments made under this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2025
This bill prohibits the removal of federal employees from the civil service during a government shutdown due to a lapse in discretionary appropriations. If an employee is removed from the civil service in violation of this bill, the employee may elect to be reinstated with back pay on the date on which the lapse in appropriations ends.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2025
Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act This bill requires federal agencies and Intelligence Community (IC) elements to assess their software inventory and develop software management plans. The bill requires each agency and each IC element to complete a comprehensive assessment of the software paid for by, in use at, or deployed throughout the agency or element. The assessment must include information such as (1) the current inventory of software; (2) contracts and other arrangements used to acquire, build, deploy, or use the software; (3) costs and fees not included in the initial contract or agreement; and (4) the interoperability of the software and restrictions on its use. Each agency and IC element must use their assessment to develop a plan to consolidate software entitlements, develop procedures for cost-effective acquisition strategies, and restrict subordinate entities from using any software entitlement without approval. (A software entitlement is software that has been purchased, leased, or licensed by or billed to an agency and that is subject to use limitations.) Such plans must be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Congress. Within two years of enactment, OMB must submit recommendations to Congress regarding government software procurement policies and practices to • increase the interoperability of software licenses; • consolidate licenses when appropriate; • reduce costs; • improve performance; and • modernize the management and oversight of agency software. The GAO must report on certain related topics, including governmentwide trends in agency software asset management practices and comparisons of such practices among agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2025
This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment authorizing Congress and the states to (1) regulate and impose reasonable viewpoint-neutral limitations on the raising and spending of money by candidates and others to influence elections; and (2) regulate and enact public campaign financing systems, including those designed to restrict the influence of private wealth by offsetting the raising and spending of money by candidates and others with increased public funding. The amendment grants Congress and the states the power to implement and enforce this amendment by legislation. They are allowed to distinguish between natural persons and corporations or other artificial entities created by law, including by prohibiting such entities from spending money to influence elections.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2025
Faster Labor Contracts Act This bill establishes mandatory deadlines for parties negotiating an initial collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and provides for mediation and arbitration to finalize CBAs. Under the bill, CBA negotiations must begin within 10 days after an employer receives a written request from a newly recognized or certified bargaining representative. The bill provides that parties must make every reasonable effort to conclude and sign a CBA. Further, the bill provides that, if the parties have not reached an agreement after 90 days, either party may request mediation by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). The bill directs FMCS to use its best efforts to secure an agreement. If mediation does not result in an agreement within 30 days (or an additional period agreed to by both parties), FMSC must refer the parties to an arbitration panel to render a decision settling the dispute. The panel must consider specified factors, including the employer's financial prospects and employees' cost of living. The resulting CBA is binding on the parties for two years. (Parties may agree to amend the terms during the two-year period.) The bill specifies that (1) an employer must maintain current wages, hours, terms, and conditions of employment during negotiations; and (2) an employer's duty to collectively bargain continues even if a representative has been decertified. The Government Accountability Office must report to Congress regarding the average number of days between the certification or recognition of a bargaining representative and the date the initial CBA was executed.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2025
George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2025 This bill addresses a wide range of policies and issues regarding policing practices and law enforcement accountability. It increases accountability for law enforcement misconduct, restricts the use of certain policing practices, enhances transparency and data collection, and establishes best practices and training requirements. The bill enhances existing enforcement mechanisms to remedy violations by law enforcement. Among other things, it does the following: lowers the criminal intent standard—from willful to knowing or reckless—to convict a law enforcement officer for misconduct in a federal prosecution, limits qualified immunity as a defense to liability in a private civil action against a law enforcement officer, and grants administrative subpoena power to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in pattern-or-practice investigations. It establishes a framework to prevent and remedy racial profiling by law enforcement at the federal, state, and local levels. It also limits the unnecessary use of force and restricts the use of no-knock warrants, chokeholds, and carotid holds. The bill creates a national registry—the National Police Misconduct Registry—to compile data on complaints and records of police misconduct. It also establishes new reporting requirements, including on the use of force, officer misconduct, and routine policing practices (e.g., stops and searches). Finally, it directs DOJ to create uniform accreditation standards for law enforcement agencies and requires law enforcement officers to complete training on racial profiling, implicit bias, and the duty to intervene when another officer uses excessive force.
![Official portrait of Rep. Brown, Shontel M. [D-OH-11]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b001313_200.jpg)