Legislative Activity

This Act amends Social Security rules regarding child survivor benefits. It establishes a new condition where children aged 18 or older will cease to qualify as full-time students, thereby stopping their benefits. This cutoff specifically applies only if the deceased parent was already receiving old-age or disability benefits, was over age 67, and earned more than \$125,000 in the relevant taxable year.

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the child tax credit for stillbirths, treating the unborn child as a qualifying child if they were carried for at least 20 weeks. It enables parents of stillborn children to claim the child tax credit as if the child died immediately after birth. The bill waives the requirement for a taxpayer identification number or social security number if the child would have been eligible for one had they been born alive. This provision applies to taxable years ending after the enactment of this Act.

The "BROADBAND Leadership Act" aims to accelerate broadband deployment by removing state and local barriers that hinder the provision and improvement of telecommunications services. It establishes strict time limits for local governments to approve or deny requests for telecommunications facilities, prohibits discriminatory practices, and allows legal recourse for those harmed by non-compliant regulations. The bill also clarifies the authority of state and local governments to manage public rights-of-way and charge reasonable fees, while preserving their rights to regulate in a competitively neutral and non-discriminatory manner. Finally, the FCC is empowered to override conflicting state or local laws.

This bill mandates the United States Postal Service to assign a distinct ZIP Code to Fairlawn, Virginia, within 180 days. The purpose is to fix the current issue where Fairlawn shares a ZIP Code with Radford, Virginia, leading to misallocated sales tax revenue from online sales.

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the above-the-line tax deduction for eligible educators' expenses from $250 to $1,000. This adjustment will be applied to taxable years starting after December 31, 2024, offering teachers greater tax relief for classroom-related spending.

The "New Source Review Permitting Improvement Act" amends the Clean Air Act to revise the definition of "modification" that triggers stricter pollution control requirements. It specifies that changes only increase pollution if the maximum hourly emission rate increases and excludes changes designed to improve efficiency, reliability, or safety. The Act also clarifies the definition of "construction" and "modifications" for areas not meeting air quality standards, focusing on changes that significantly increase annual emissions. Finally, it ensures that changes not previously considered modifications will not be under the new law.

The "Reclaiming Congress's Constitutional Mandate in Trade Resolution" establishes a Joint Ad Hoc Committee and a Congressional Advisory Board to develop a plan for transferring the functions of the Office of the United States Trade Representative to the legislative branch. This transfer aims to occur within four years of the committee's report or by July 1, 2028, whichever is later, with the goal of reasserting Congress's role in trade policy. The resolution outlines the composition, responsibilities, and timelines for both the committee and the advisory board, ensuring collaboration and expert input in the transfer process. It also mandates cooperation from the United States Trade Representative and other executive branch offices to facilitate the transfer.