Legislative Activity

The "Retired Law Enforcement Officers Continuing Service Act" allows the Attorney General to award grants to state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies to hire retired law enforcement personnel. These retired officers will train civilian employees and perform civilian law enforcement tasks such as assisting in investigations, reviewing footage, and providing computer expertise. The grants are subject to strict accountability requirements, including audits, to prevent fraud and waste, with priority given to entities with a clean audit history. The Attorney General must provide annual certifications and reports to Congress on audit completion, exclusions, and any duplicative grants awarded.

The Enhancing First Response Act aims to improve emergency communications and response. It mandates the FCC to issue reports and hold public hearings after major disasters to assess and improve network resilience and 911 outage reporting. The Act also directs the Office of Management and Budget to classify public safety telecommunicators as a protective service occupation and requires a report on the FCC's enforcement of Karis Law, which ensures direct dialing to 911 from multi-line phone systems.

This resolution designates April 2025 as "Second Chance Month" to raise awareness about the challenges faced by individuals with criminal records. It recognizes the importance of redemption and removing barriers to employment, housing, and education for those re-entering society. The resolution encourages communities and organizations to support second chances and facilitate the successful reintegration of individuals with criminal records into their communities.

The "Find It Early Act" aims to improve early breast cancer detection by requiring health insurance plans, including Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and Veterans Affairs, to cover additional breast screenings and diagnostic imaging without cost-sharing for individuals at higher risk or who need it due to age, race, ethnicity, or family history, starting in 2026. This ensures that more women have access to potentially life-saving screenings, regardless of their ability to pay. By removing financial barriers, the Act seeks to promote early detection and improve outcomes for those at risk of breast cancer.

This resolution supports National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, recognizing the vital role these professionals play in emergency response and public safety. It acknowledges their extensive responsibilities, the stresses they face, and advocates for government recognition of their contributions. The resolution encourages all Americans to appreciate the life-saving work of public safety telecommunicators.

The Stop STALLING Act aims to prevent pharmaceutical companies from filing frivolous petitions with the intent of delaying the approval of generic drugs and hindering competition. It empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to take civil action against those who submit "sham" petitions, defined as objectively baseless petitions intended to interfere with a competitor's business. Penalties for submitting sham petitions include substantial fines, potentially based on the revenue earned due to the delayed drug approval. The Act clarifies that it does not alter existing antitrust laws and applies to petitions submitted after the Act's enactment.

The Smithsonian American Women's History Museum Act authorizes the creation of a Smithsonian American Women's History Museum on the National Mall. It ensures the museum's exhibits and programs accurately represent the diverse experiences of women in the United States, seeking guidance from various sources reflecting different viewpoints. The Act also requires regular reports to Congress on the museum's progress in meeting these diversity requirements.

The "Preserve Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act" aims to foster competition in the pharmaceutical market by preventing brand-name drug and biosimilar manufacturers from entering into anticompetitive agreements that delay or prevent the entry of generic drugs and biosimilars. It prohibits agreements where generic or biosimilar applicants receive compensation to limit competition, with certain exceptions, and empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce these prohibitions. The Act also requires companies to certify that their agreements with generic drug or biosimilar manufacturers are complete and include all related terms and clarifies that forfeiture of the 180-day exclusivity period can occur if an agreement violates the Federal Trade Commission Act. Finally, the Act directs the FTC to submit a recommendation on a potential amendment regarding the exclusion of certain damage claims and sets a statute of limitations for enforcement proceedings.

The "Youth Mental Health Research Act" directs the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish a Youth Mental Health Research Initiative. This initiative will encourage collaborative research to improve youth mental health outcomes. The initiative will be led by the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, and will promote social, behavioral, cognitive, and developmental research. The act authorizes $100 million in appropriations each fiscal year from 2025 through 2030 to fund the initiative.

The "Protect Elections from Deceptive AI Act" prohibits the distribution of materially deceptive AI-generated audio or visual media that relates to candidates for Federal office to influence an election or solicit funds. It allows candidates depicted in such media to seek injunctive relief and damages, while providing exemptions for news outlets and satire. The bill requires clear and convincing evidence for violations and ensures severability of its provisions.

The "Volunteer Driver Tax Appreciation Act of 2025" increases the standard mileage rate that volunteer drivers can deduct for charitable contributions. The new rate will be determined by the Secretary but will not be less than the standard mileage rate used for business and medical expenses. This change aims to provide greater tax relief for individuals who use their personal vehicles for charitable purposes, effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2024.

The "Rebuild America's Health Care Schools Act of 2025" amends the Social Security Act to adjust allowable direct and indirect costs for nursing and allied health education programs. It ensures that hospitals participating in these programs can claim all reasonable costs, including those incurred directly, allocated by related entities, or associated with training, faculty contracts, and shared services. The Act also requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue rules to implement these changes and prohibits recouping or reducing Medicare payments for allowable costs, and mandates refunds for past recoupments.

The Crop Insurance for Future Farmers Act amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to expand the definition of "beginning farmer or rancher" and "veteran farmer or rancher" from 5 to 10 years of farming experience. It also increases crop insurance assistance for beginning and veteran farmers/ranchers, providing additional premium support that increases over their first ten years.

The Preventing Illegal Weapons Trafficking Act of 2025 aims to combat machinegun conversion devices by directing federal agencies to develop a coordinated strategy to prevent their import and trafficking, enhance law enforcement capabilities, and improve data collection. It also amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow for the forfeiture of proceeds from illegal machinegun trafficking and requires the Attorney General to include data on machinegun conversion devices in the annual firearms trafficking report.

The "Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program Act of 2025" aims to boost the consumption of nutrient-rich dairy products among SNAP recipients by establishing a grant program for states and nonprofits to provide purchase incentives. The program prioritizes projects that maximize direct incentives for dairy purchased with SNAP benefits and utilizes point-of-sale technology. Independent evaluations will assess the impact of the incentives, and the Secretary of Agriculture will report findings to Congress. The act provides \$10 million in mandatory funding per fiscal year, and authorizes appropriations of \$10 million for fiscal year 2025 and each year after.

The "Hearing Device Coverage Clarification Act" directs the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to clarify that implanted active middle ear hearing devices are prosthetics, thus ensuring they are not excluded from Medicare coverage. This clarification will ensure coverage for these devices under Medicare, as they are not subject to the hearing aid coverage exclusion. The clarification must be made within 60 days of the bill's enactment.

The Scientific EXPERT Act of 2025 aims to improve drug development for rare diseases by mandating the Secretary to develop a process for Foundation-led meetings. These meetings will focus on discussing challenges in developing drugs for rare diseases, involving experts from the FDA, clinicians, patient representatives, and industry. The goal is to facilitate collaboration and gather input to inform the FDA's risk-benefit assessments, with meeting outcomes and FDA responses reported publicly. The act allocates funding for these meetings and requires annual reports to Congress on their impact.

The "RTP Full Funding Act of 2025" aims to ensure the Recreational Trails Program (RTP) receives full funding, commensurate with the fuel taxes paid by nonhighway recreation vehicles. It directs the Federal Highway Administration to provide Congress with accurate estimates of nonhighway fuel taxes collected, ensuring the RTP is funded appropriately under existing law without affecting other highway programs. This will allow for the continued support of trail infrastructure development and maintenance.

The Tribal Adoption Parity Act amends the Internal Revenue Code to recognize Indian tribal governments when determining if a child has special needs for the adoption credit. This change ensures that adoptions facilitated through tribal governments receive the same federal tax benefits as other adoptions involving children with special needs. The act applies to taxable years beginning after the law is enacted.

The Apprenticeships to College Act aims to strengthen the connection between apprenticeship programs and educational institutions. It directs the Secretaries of Labor and Education to form an agreement supporting a college consortium. This consortium will focus on aligning education and apprenticeship records, providing guidance on funding, and creating credit awarding systems for apprenticeship program participants. Participation in the consortium is voluntary for higher education institutions and apprenticeship sponsors.