Legislative Activity

This resolution expresses support for National Adoption Day and Month by promoting national awareness of adoption and the children awaiting permanent families. It highlights the significant number of children in foster care waiting for adoption and encourages all Americans to consider providing a safe, permanent, and well-being-focused home for these children. The resolution supports various avenues for achieving permanency, including reunification, kinship care, and adoption.

The Keep America Building Act ensures that essential work under existing Federal contracts continues without interruption, delay, or stoppage due to a lapse in appropriations. This legislation prevents federal funding gaps from halting ongoing contractual obligations.

This resolution designates October as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month to highlight the widespread and devastating impact of intimate partner violence across all demographics. It recognizes the urgent need to eliminate domestic violence and supports increased funding for intervention and prevention programs. The resolution underscores the severe physical, emotional, and economic toll this abuse takes on individuals, families, and communities.

The Plant-Powered School Meals Pilot Act establishes a three-year grant program to help school food authorities offer 100% plant-based meal options, prioritizing culturally appropriate and educational components. Additionally, the bill clarifies and expands requirements for schools to substitute fluid milk with nutritionally equivalent nondairy beverages to accommodate medical, religious, or personal dietary needs. A separate pilot program is also created to help cover the costs associated with providing these nondairy substitutes based on written requests.

The GRAD Act ensures that students maintain their current enrollment status during a government shutdown, even if federal student aid is temporarily disrupted. This legislation prevents educational institutions from penalizing students by changing their enrollment status due to funding lapses. Essentially, it protects students from negative academic consequences caused by federal funding interruptions.

This resolution formally honors the extraordinary life, leadership, and enduring legacy of Dr. Jane Goodall. It celebrates her groundbreaking scientific contributions to primatology and her tireless global advocacy for wildlife conservation and environmental education. The bill recognizes her founding of the Roots and Shoots program and extends sympathy to her family and colleagues.

This resolution expresses the House's support for recognizing October 26th as Intersex Awareness Day and affirms the goals of the observance. It highlights the reality of natural variations in sex characteristics and strongly condemns nonconsensual, irreversible medical procedures performed on intersex infants and children. The bill encourages federal, state, and local entities to promote awareness, ensure culturally sensitive healthcare, and prioritize the bodily autonomy and human rights of intersex individuals.

The Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act of 2025 establishes a three-year pilot program to provide a monthly, unconditional cash payment to 10,000 eligible individuals, set at the local fair market rent for a two-bedroom home. This initiative aims to study the effects of guaranteed income on financial stability, health, and overall well-being, noting that payments will not affect eligibility for other federal assistance programs. The Department of Health and Human Services, in partnership with the IRS and an external research organization, will manage the program and report findings to Congress within specified timelines. Congress has authorized \$495 million annually from Fiscal Year 2026 through 2030 to fund this study.

This resolution formally recognizes the significant religious and historical importance of the festival of Diwali to Indian-American communities across the nation. Congress acknowledges Diwali as the festival of lights, celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains for its symbolism of knowledge, peace, and the triumph of good over evil. By passing this, the House expresses respect for the Indian diaspora and appreciates the strong partnership between the United States and India.

The Federal Government Advertising Equity Accountability Act mandates that executive agencies provide detailed breakdowns of their advertising contract expenditures in their annual budget requests, starting with fiscal year 2027. This new reporting requirement forces agencies to specify total advertising spending alongside amounts directed toward small, socially and economically disadvantaged, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses. The goal is to increase transparency regarding federal advertising investments and equity in contract awards.

This bill, the White House NOT FOR SALE Act, prohibits placing any individual's or organization's name on permanent or semi-permanent displays within the White House or its grounds without express approval from both the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House. This approval process requires consultation with the White House Curator and the Committee for the Preservation of the White House. However, displays that qualify as "commemorative works" are governed by existing federal law instead.

The BALL Act, or White House Building Activities Locked-out in Lapse Act, prohibits the use of federal funds for any construction or renovation projects at the White House or its grounds during a government shutdown caused by a lapse in appropriations. This spending ban remains in effect until new funding is enacted. The only exception allows for work deemed immediately necessary for health or safety reasons.

This resolution expresses the sense of the House that immigration enforcement operations must be transparent and accountable. It calls for mandatory identification, body cameras, and limits on agents concealing their identity during public interactions. Furthermore, the bill pushes for stronger oversight, better training, and increased penalties for impersonation to ensure constitutional protections are upheld.

The National Fire Academy RESCUE Act ensures that fire departments are reimbursed for expenses incurred when National Fire Academy training courses are canceled due to a lapse in federal appropriations (a government shutdown). FEMA must reimburse departments for covered costs, such as travel and backfill staffing, within 90 days of receiving an itemized application following the shutdown's end. This reimbursement does not apply if the cancellation was due to reasons other than a lapse in appropriations, such as instructor illness or other emergencies.

The Head Start Shutdown Protection Act of 2025 ensures that states, local governments, or school districts are reimbursed for any of their own funds used to keep Head Start and Early Head Start programs operational during a lapse in federal appropriations. This legislation protects these vital early childhood education services from disruption caused by government shutdowns. By guaranteeing reimbursement, the Act encourages local entities to maintain program continuity without bearing the financial burden.

The WIC Benefits Protection Act mandates that all states must operate the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). This legislation also guarantees permanent, mandatory funding for WIC starting in fiscal year 2026, ensuring the program has the necessary resources annually. Furthermore, it clarifies eligibility language within the program's governing statute.

This resolution expresses deep concern over the growing trend of book banning and threats to freedom of expression in U.S. schools and libraries. It asserts that such censorship undermines democratic values and harms students by restricting access to diverse ideas and histories. The bill urges local entities to follow best practices for book challenges and calls for the immediate reinstatement of books removed from Department of Defense schools. Ultimately, it reaffirms the nation's commitment to First Amendment rights and the freedom to read.

The Voter Purge Protection Act establishes strict new evidence requirements for states before they can remove registered voters from the rolls for federal elections. States must have objective proof that a voter is ineligible and cannot remove someone solely for not voting or failing to respond to a notice unless it was returned as undeliverable. If a voter is removed, the state must notify them within 48 hours with instructions on how to re-register.

The Fair Access to Swift and Timely Justice Act, or FAST Justice Act, allows federal employees or job applicants to file a civil lawsuit in federal district court if the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) fails to issue a decision on their appeal within 120 days. This provision provides an alternative remedy when the MSPB's review process causes undue delay. Filing a lawsuit pauses the MSPB appeal, but the original appeal rights remain intact if the lawsuit is dismissed.

The Emergency Relief for Federal Workers Act of 2025 provides financial relief to federal employees affected by government shutdowns. This bill waives the 10% early withdrawal penalty on Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) distributions up to $30,000 during a qualifying shutdown. Additionally, it allows affected employees greater access to TSP hardship withdrawals and loans, and prevents missed TSP loan payments due to a shutdown from being treated as a taxable distribution.