Legislative Activity

The Reclaiming Congressional Trade Authority Act of 2025 significantly limits the President's ability to impose new import duties for national security reasons by requiring explicit authorization via a Congressional joint resolution of approval. This bill also mandates that the U.S. Trade Representative must submit proposals for certain trade restrictions to the International Trade Commission and Congress, allowing Congress a 60-day window to disapprove the action. Overall, the legislation reasserts Congress's role in approving major trade restrictions previously enacted unilaterally by the Executive Branch.

The Invest to Protect Act of 2025 establishes a new, streamlined grant program within the Department of Justice to support small local and Tribal law enforcement agencies (under 175 officers). These funds are specifically designated for officer training, mental health resources, and recruitment/retention bonuses. The law mandates a rapid application process and includes strict accountability measures, such as audits and public reporting of bonuses. Congress is authorized to appropriate up to $50 million annually for this program through fiscal year 2031.

The Expanding Access to School Meals Act of 2025 aims to simplify school meal programs by eliminating the "reduced-price" meal category for both breakfast and lunch. It significantly expands eligibility for free school meals by raising the federal poverty level threshold to 224% and allowing automatic certification for children receiving Medicaid benefits. Additionally, the bill enhances financial support for schools by allowing retroactive reimbursement claims and increasing the multiplier for the Community Eligibility Program.

The Don't Cut FAA Workers Act of 2025 places a temporary one-year hold on mass layoffs at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) immediately following a major aviation accident resulting in a fatality. The FAA Administrator cannot proceed with such layoffs during this period unless Congress explicitly approves the reduction in force. A "mass layoff" is defined as reducing staff by 10 or more employees at a single FAA site or 250 or more employees across the entire Administration within 90 days.

This bill directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pilot program aimed at preventing vehicle-based terrorism by developing standards for suspicious activity reporting in the auto rental and sales industries, providing threat assessments, and offering guidance and technical assistance to improve reporting. It also mandates regular reports to Congress on the program's impact and a study on collaborating with rental car and ride-sharing companies to identify terrorism risks. The bill includes liability exemptions for dealers and rental companies participating in the pilot program.

The FIRE Cancer Act of 2025 aims to improve cancer prevention among firefighters by establishing cancer prevention programs, including early detection testing. It allocates $700 million in grants for these programs. The bill also directs FEMA and the CDC to create a voluntary program for firefighters to share anonymized screening results to identify cancer trends and causes.

The "ALYSSA Act" amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require all elementary and secondary schools to install silent panic alarms for use during school security emergencies. To receive federal funding, local education agencies must equip each school with at least one panic alarm, defined as a silent security system for signaling life-threatening emergencies to law enforcement. This ensures schools have a direct and immediate way to alert law enforcement during critical situations.

The SOS Act of 2025 amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to increase funding for school resource officers by $50 million per fiscal year from 2026 through 2035, allocating a minimum of $50,000,000 in grants to local governments or law enforcement agencies.

The VA Appeals Reform Act of 2025 seeks to improve the process for veterans' benefits claims by requiring the VA to provide claimants with necessary documents and assistance, ensure thorough review and readjudication of claims, and expedite the handling of appeals. It also modifies the appointment and training of the Board of Veterans' Appeals members and mandates the establishment of an electronic filing system. Additionally, the act expands the jurisdiction of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, changing the scope of review for certain claims.

The "No Veteran Should Go Hungry Act of 2025" ensures that veterans receive information about federal food and nutrition assistance programs, such as SNAP and WIC, as part of their Transition Assistance Program. This amendment to title 10, United States Code, aims to combat food insecurity among veterans by increasing awareness of available resources. The Secretary of Agriculture will be consulted in the development and provision of this information.

This bill mandates that all Department of Veterans Affairs domiciliary facilities and State homes must have resident advocates. These advocates will serve as liaisons for veterans, addressing complaints and escalating them to higher authorities when necessary. The goal is to ensure veterans' concerns are heard and addressed effectively within these facilities.

The "Know Your Rates Act" amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, mandating that electric and gas utilities provide consumers with more detailed billing information, including comparisons to previous periods and notifications regarding energy consumption. Consumers will receive notifications if their energy usage exceeds prior usage and allows consumers to set a threshold for notifications when their bill reaches a specific dollar amount. This act applies to utilities receiving federal funding, as determined by the Commission.

Cameron's Law amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the orphan drug tax credit from 25% to 50%. This change aims to incentivize the development of treatments for rare diseases by offering greater financial support to companies through enhanced tax benefits. The adjusted tax credit will be effective for taxable years starting after the enactment of this law.

The Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act establishes an office within the Department of Agriculture, headed by a Special Investigator, to investigate and prosecute violations of the Packers and Stockyards Act. This office will serve as a liaison between various government entities on competition and trade practices in the food and agricultural sector. It will also consult with the Department of Homeland Security on national security and infrastructure security. The office is granted the authority to bring civil or administrative action.

The "No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act" prohibits the use of the DeepSeek application on government devices, with exceptions for law enforcement, national security, and security research. The Office of Management and Budget is tasked with creating guidelines for executive agencies to remove DeepSeek from their information technology. Any authorized use of DeepSeek under the exceptions requires documented risk mitigation actions.

The LITTLE Act of 2025 aims to lower infant and toddler tuition costs by providing tax credits to both childcare providers and families. It establishes a tax credit for childcare providers to cover 30% of qualified startup expenses, capped at $10,000. The act also increases and makes refundable the household and dependent care tax credit for eligible families, with the amount of expenses that can be claimed for the credit set at $7,500 for one qualifying individual and $15,000 for two or more.

This resolution calls on the FBI, DHS, and FAA to provide an immediate public briefing regarding recent unauthorized drone activity in New Jersey and New York. It urges federal agencies to collaborate with state and local law enforcement to mitigate these threats and requests an assessment of necessary security measures to protect critical infrastructure.

The Accountability for Veterans Act mandates that the Department of Veterans Affairs submit a comprehensive report to Congress addressing critical operational challenges. This report must analyze the causes of the disability benefits appeals backlog, identify improvements for the Transition Assistance Program, and outline solutions for persistent management issues within low-performing VA health care systems.

The All Aboard Act mandates that Amtrak provide full refunds to passengers for trips significantly delayed or canceled due to the railroad's own operational failures. Additionally, the bill requires Amtrak to abandon its "run-to-fail" maintenance model in favor of more reliable asset management strategies. Failure to comply with these refund requirements would result in the suspension of Amtrak’s federal funding.

The Holocaust Education and Antisemitism Lessons Act directs the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to conduct a comprehensive study of Holocaust education in public elementary and secondary schools across the United States. This study will evaluate current curriculum standards, teaching methods, and available resources to identify gaps and improve how students learn about the Holocaust and the history of antisemitism. The findings will be compiled into a report submitted to Congress to help strengthen educational efforts in preventing hate and bigotry.