Legislative Activity

The Stop Sextortion Act criminalizes threatening to distribute child sexual abuse material, even if the material does not exist, to intimidate or coerce victims. This legislation establishes severe penalties for making such threats, mirroring those for actual distribution. Furthermore, the Act increases maximum prison sentences by ten years for crimes involving the use of child sexual abuse material to threaten or harm an individual.

The Accessing Satellite Capabilities to Enable New Discoveries (ASCEND) Act establishes a permanent NASA program to systematically purchase and distribute commercial Earth observation data and imagery. This initiative aims to cost-effectively acquire data to complement NASA's scientific needs and broaden its availability to researchers. The legislation ensures that data acquired can be freely published for scientific purposes and mandates regular reporting on vendor agreements and data usage.

The PATHS to Tutor Act of 2025 establishes a $500 million competitive grant program to fund high-quality tutoring partnerships between schools and educator preparation programs. These partnerships will place trained tutors in small groups within high-need or hard-to-staff schools. The goal is to accelerate student learning while providing aspiring teachers with valuable, compensated experience. The bill also coordinates these tutoring positions with national service programs to offer educational awards to tutors upon completion of service.

The ECCHO Act establishes a new federal crime for intentionally coercing a minor under 18 to commit harmful acts, including self-harm, violence against others or animals, arson, or specific online offenses like swatting. This legislation defines coercion broadly to include manipulation, threats, and intimidation used to force a child into these prohibited actions. Penalties vary based on the severity of the coerced act, with life imprisonment possible for coercing suicide or homicide. The Act also updates existing federal laws to incorporate this new offense and ensure comprehensive enforcement.

The PBM Price Transparency and Accountability Act aims to increase fairness and oversight in prescription drug pricing across Medicaid and Medicare Part D. It mandates transparent payment models for Medicaid, prohibiting abusive spread pricing by Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). Additionally, the bill establishes new network access standards for Medicare pharmacies and imposes strict compensation and reporting requirements on PBMs to ensure accountability to Medicare plans.

The Helping Undergraduate Students Thrive with Long-Term Earnings (HUSTLE) Act establishes tax-advantaged savings accounts, called NIL Investment Accounts, for college athletes to save their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) income for future use. The bill also reforms agent representation by setting new registration, certification, and fee limits for agents dealing with student NIL endorsement contracts. Furthermore, it grants student athletes a private right of action to sue agents for violations of these new federal standards.

This bill reauthorizes the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program and sets the federal funding share for state and tribal cybersecurity grants for fiscal year 2026. It authorizes $300 million for these programs in FY2026. Additionally, the bill extends the authorization for the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program by one year.

This Act, the Conscience Protections for Medical Residents Act, amends Medicare rules to prohibit residency programs from requiring participation in abortion training. Programs that mandate abortion training or discriminate against residents who opt out or refuse to participate will no longer qualify as "approved" under Medicare. This ensures medical residents are not forced to perform, assist, or refer for abortions as a condition of their training.

This Act amends immigration law to explicitly designate officials and members of Hamas, Palestine Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, Al-Qaeda, and ISIS as inadmissible due to terrorist activity. It also bars individuals who endorse or espouse terrorist activities conducted by these specified groups.

The NOPAIN for Veterans Act mandates that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) must include specific, FDA-approved non-opioid pain management drugs in its national formulary. This ensures veterans have access to alternatives that do not act on opioid receptors for pain relief. The bill sets clear deadlines for the inclusion of these non-opioid products.

The Flight Risk Reduction Act amends federal law to establish a new presumption against pretrial release for non-citizens who are not lawful permanent residents. This change mandates a detention hearing for these individuals and requires courts to presume detention is necessary. Crucially, defendants cannot use ties to family or employment in the U.S. to overcome this presumption.

This Senate resolution expresses support for the European Union's efforts to rapidly diversify away from Russian energy sources following the invasion of Ukraine. It commends recent EU and U.S. sanctions targeting Russian energy revenues. The resolution also specifically calls on Hungary to adhere to the established timelines for ending its dependence on Russian fossil fuels.

The Ensuring Predictable and Reliable Water Deliveries Act of 2025 mandates annual reporting on Mexico's water deliveries under the 1944 Treaty. If Mexico fails to deliver the minimum required water volume, the U.S. President must deny non-Treaty requests from Mexico. Exceptions to this limitation are possible only for documented humanitarian or ecological emergencies vital to U.S. national interests.

The Violent Juvenile Offender Accountability Act of 2025 amends federal law to allow for the direct criminal prosecution of juveniles aged 16 and older in district court. This direct prosecution applies specifically when the juvenile is alleged to have committed serious violent offenses, such as homicide, aggravated assault, or aggravated sexual abuse. The bill removes the requirement for an Attorney General motion to initiate these criminal proceedings for these specific, severe crimes.

This resolution expresses support for designating the week beginning November 3, 2025, as "National School Psychology Week." It recognizes the vital role school psychologists play in supporting student mental health, reducing learning barriers, and fostering academic success. The designation aims to honor these professionals and promote awareness of their essential contributions to schools and communities.

The STOP Human Trafficking Act directs the Secretary of Transportation to enhance efforts to combat human trafficking within the transportation sector. This involves implementing new research, developing centralized databases and mode-specific policies for information sharing, and updating training and awareness materials informed by survivors. The Act also establishes a continuous public awareness campaign and creates a grant program to fund prevention efforts by various transportation stakeholders.

The Deporting Fraudsters Act of 2025 amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish new grounds for inadmissibility and deportability. This legislation targets aliens convicted of, admitting to, or conspiring to commit offenses involving defrauding the U.S. Government or unlawfully receiving federal, state, or local public benefits. The goal is to ensure that individuals who commit such fraud cannot enter or remain in the United States.

This resolution officially designates the week of November 3 through November 7, 2025, as National Veterans Small Business Week. It recognizes the significant contributions of the over 1.65 million veteran-owned small businesses to the U.S. economy. The bill supports creating a business-friendly environment and expresses appreciation for veterans' continued service through entrepreneurship.

The Firearm Access During Shutdowns Act of 2025 designates essential firearm-related operations as necessary for protecting human life or property during a government shutdown. This ensures that key functions, such as the FBI's NICS background check system and critical ATF, Commerce, and State Department licensing activities, continue without interruption. Employees performing these duties will be considered "excepted employees" and must continue to work.

The Safer Supervision Act of 2025 aims to reform federal supervised release by requiring individualized assessments before imposing supervision and establishing a presumption for early termination based on compliance. The bill also mandates a report on providing law enforcement availability pay to probation officers and allows certain prisoners without supervision terms to apply earned time credits for early release. Finally, it directs the GAO to study federal post-release supervision practices and workforce needs.