Legislative Activity

This resolution expresses support for designating May 5, 2025, as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, acknowledging the ongoing crisis and need for increased awareness, resources, and updated research. It calls on the public to remember the lives lost and support the victims' families, while also urging the Department of Justice to conduct a new study to update statistics on this critical issue.

This resolution supports the designation of May 4-10, 2025, as "National Small Business Week". It recognizes the significant role of over 34.5 million small businesses in the U.S. that contribute to the economy and provide over 59 million jobs. The resolution celebrates the entrepreneurial spirit, achievements, and resilience of small business owners and their employees.

The "America the Beautiful Act" reauthorizes and expands the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund through 2033, increasing its funding to $2 billion. It prioritizes projects with private donations, mandates annual project lists to Congress, and allows fund allocation even without full-year appropriations. The act also focuses on promoting donation opportunities, managing cash donations, disposing of unneeded assets, and improving preventative maintenance.

This resolution directs the Secretary of State to provide Congress with a report on El Salvador's human rights practices, focusing on alleged violations like torture, forced disappearances, and denial of due process. It asks for details on U.S. efforts to promote human rights in El Salvador and to ensure that U.S. security assistance does not support activities that violate human rights or lead to the wrongful detention of U.S. citizens or residents. The report should also assess conditions in El Salvador's Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) and actions taken to address allegations of human rights abuses against U.S. citizens/residents.

**Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2025 Summary:** This bill aims to expand and improve the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program by updating state allocation formulas, reforming tenant eligibility requirements, and modifying credit eligibility rules. It also focuses on increasing affordable housing opportunities for Native Americans and in rural areas. Additionally, the bill updates terminology in the Internal Revenue Code to replace "low-income" with "affordable" when referring to housing tax credits, and promotes data sharing and discourages discriminatory land use policies to enhance transparency and effectiveness.

The Equality Act amends existing civil rights laws to explicitly include protections against discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity in areas such as public accommodations, employment, housing, credit, and jury service. It clarifies and expands the definition of sex to include sex stereotypes, pregnancy, childbirth, related medical conditions, sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics, including intersex traits. The act ensures equal access to shared facilities and prohibits the use of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 to justify discrimination. Ultimately, the Equality Act aims to provide consistent and comprehensive protections against discrimination for LGBTQ individuals and women across various aspects of life.

This resolution expresses the Senate's support for designating April 2025 as National Child Abuse Prevention Month to increase awareness and education, build strong families, support survivors, and ensure justice for victims. It recognizes the importance of preventing child abuse and neglect, healing those affected, and ensuring justice for victims of childhood abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse. The resolution highlights the prevalence and impact of adverse childhood experiences and child maltreatment. It also emphasizes the importance of programs that support families and prevent child abuse.

The TAKE IT DOWN Act aims to combat the nonconsensual sharing of intimate visual depictions, including deepfakes, by establishing criminal penalties for those who knowingly publish such content and requiring online platforms to create a process for individuals to request the removal of these depictions. Platforms must remove the content within 48 hours of a valid request and make reasonable efforts to remove any known identical copies. Failure to comply with these takedown obligations will be treated as a violation under the Federal Trade Commission Act. The Act also defines key terms related to consent, digital forgeries, and covered platforms.

The "Finding Opportunities for Resource Exploration Act" aims to enhance international cooperation in mapping critical minerals and rare earth elements through memorandums of understanding with partner countries. This collaboration seeks to improve global supply chains, ensure U.S. and allied companies have priority in resource development, and encourage private investment in sustainable resource management. The Act prioritizes projects that process minerals in the U.S. or allied countries and protects mapping data from unauthorized access. It also mandates congressional notification and private sector consultation to facilitate private sector interest in developing critical minerals and rare earth elements.

The Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to limit consumer reporting agencies from providing consumer reports to other entities for credit transactions involving residential mortgage loans. Exceptions are made for firm offers of credit or insurance, authorized access, or if the entity currently originates or services the consumer's mortgage, or is an insured depository institution or credit union holding a current account for the consumer. The act will take effect 180 days after enactment.

The Fix Our Forests Act aims to reduce wildfire risks and improve forest health through landscape-scale restoration, community protection in wildland-urban interfaces, and strategic partnerships. It establishes programs for fireshed management, wildfire technology deployment, and biochar development, while also reforming litigation related to forest management and promoting prescribed fires. Additionally, the act creates a casualty assistance program for firefighters and their families, ensuring support during times of crisis.

The PROOF Act mandates digital exchanges and custodians to protect customer assets by establishing accounting standards, minimizing loss risks, and preventing commingling with exchange funds. It requires monthly attestations and proof of reserves from independent auditors, following standards set by accounting bodies, with public reports to the Under Secretary. Non-compliant entities face civil penalties, and the Under Secretary publishes the names of entities that fail to meet the requirements.

This resolution designates the week of April 19 through April 27, 2025, as "National Park Week" to recognize the importance of national parks for recreation, education, and economic contributions. It encourages people to visit and support these parks while acknowledging the role of the National Park Service in protecting these resources for future generations.

The "Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program Improvement Act of 2025" amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to improve the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). It allows landowners more flexibility in allocating annual payments, sets specific payment rates for water rights retirement and dryland agricultural use agreements, and mandates agreements to protect water resources on agricultural land. Additionally, the bill exempts CREP rental payments from payment limitations.

This resolution recognizes Clela Rorex for her historic issuance of the first same-sex marriage license in the U.S. in 1975 and her subsequent LGBTQ advocacy. It acknowledges her role as a civil rights leader who paved the way for the legalization of same-sex marriage nationwide. The resolution also designates March 26, 2025, as Clela Rorex Day.

The "Tax Cut for Workers Act of 2025" expands the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for individuals without qualifying children by lowering the minimum age, eliminating the maximum age, and increasing credit and phaseout percentages. It also makes permanent the application of the EITC to U.S. possessions and allows taxpayers to elect to use prior year earned income when calculating the EITC if it results in a larger credit. These changes aim to provide additional tax relief to low- and moderate-income workers.

This resolution honors the life and distinguished career of former Louisiana Senator John Bennett Johnston, Jr., recognizing his contributions to energy policy, natural resource conservation, and Louisiana's cultural heritage. It directs the Secretary of the Senate to notify the House of Representatives and send a copy of the resolution to Senator Johnston's family. Upon adoption, the Senate will adjourn in his honor.

The Fair Day in Court for Kids Act of 2025 aims to ensure that unaccompanied children have legal representation in immigration proceedings by providing government-funded counsel. It mandates that these children receive complete copies of their immigration files and have sufficient time to review them, and it also requires the Department of Homeland Security to allow counsel access to detained non-citizens. The Act directs the Office of Refugee Resettlement to develop guidelines for legal representation and requires annual reports on the provision of counsel to unaccompanied children. Additionally, it allows unaccompanied children to reopen their immigration cases if they were not provided with appointed counsel, and it authorizes the necessary appropriations for implementation.

The "Increasing Transparency in Generic Drug Applications Act" amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to increase transparency in generic drug applications by requiring the Secretary of Health and Human Services to disclose information about the sameness of a proposed generic drug to the listed drug, and to issue guidance on how sameness is determined. This ensures generic drug manufacturers understand the requirements for approval, and prevents the Secretary from changing a determination of sameness unless specific conditions are met. It also protects trade secrets and confidential information while promoting transparency.

The CONNECT for Health Act of 2025 expands access to telehealth services under Medicare by removing geographic restrictions, expanding eligible practitioners and originating sites, and making waivers for Federally Qualified Health Centers and Native American health facilities permanent. It also enhances program integrity by clarifying fraud and abuse laws, authorizing additional funding for oversight, and addressing unusual billing patterns. Additionally, the act supports beneficiaries and providers by requiring the development of resources and training, reviewing quality measures, and mandating the publication of data on telehealth services. These changes aim to make telehealth a more accessible, high-quality, and permanent option for patients, particularly those in underserved areas.