Legislative Activity

This resolution officially designates May 2025 as "Older Americans Month" to recognize the vital contributions of senior citizens to the nation. It highlights the growing senior population and their continued involvement in the workforce and volunteering. The bill encourages communities nationwide to celebrate older Americans and create opportunities for them to share their wisdom and remain active participants in society.

This resolution officially recognizes May as Jewish American Heritage Month to celebrate the significant contributions of Jewish Americans throughout U.S. history. It calls on leaders to use this month to educate the public about Jewish heritage and actively counter the current rise in antisemitism. The measure emphasizes the importance of ensuring the safety and dignity of the Jewish American community.

This bill, the Border Drone Threat Assessment Act, mandates a comprehensive one-year threat assessment by the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security regarding the use of unmanned aircraft systems (drones) near U.S. international borders. The assessment must detail malign actors, their methods, current U.S. detection and defense capabilities, and privacy considerations. Following the assessment, a detailed report and subsequent briefing must be delivered to Congress outlining the threats and recommending any necessary legal or resource changes to counter them effectively.

The Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2025 updates federal grant programs to strengthen the nursing pipeline. It expands eligibility for advanced nursing education grants to cover more specialized roles and updates funding for modernizing nursing school resources like simulation labs. The bill also increases the authorized funding levels for these critical nursing workforce programs through Fiscal Year 2030.

The Access Technology Affordability Act of 2025 establishes a new federal tax credit to help offset the cost of essential access technology for blind individuals. This credit covers expenses for hardware or software that converts visual information into usable formats for the taxpayer, their spouse, or a dependent. The credit is capped at \$2,000 over any three-year period and is set to expire for tax years beginning after December 31, 2030.

The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act of 2025 aims to modernize and increase transparency in the prior authorization process for Medicare Advantage plans. This bill mandates the adoption of electronic prior authorization systems and requires plans to publicly report detailed data on their approval, denial, and appeal rates. Furthermore, it establishes new standards to protect enrollees and grants the Secretary authority to enforce faster decision timelines for care requests.

The End Diaper Need Act of 2025 aims to combat diaper insecurity by significantly increasing federal funding through the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) program to support low-income families, medically complex children, and adults needing incontinence supplies. Additionally, the bill expands tax-advantaged healthcare accounts, such as HSAs and FSAs, to explicitly cover the cost of medically necessary diapers and related supplies. This legislation mandates states to partner with local organizations to distribute these essential items and requires program evaluations to track impact.

The Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act of 2025 establishes a formal, publicly accessible code of conduct for Supreme Court Justices and creates a judicial investigation panel to handle related ethics complaints. The bill also mandates stricter disclosure requirements for gifts and income received by Justices, and significantly expands the circumstances under which a federal judge must recuse themselves due to financial ties or lobbying influence. Finally, it institutes new disclosure rules for parties and *amici curiae* in cases before the Court, alongside studies to monitor judicial compliance.

The COUNTER Act grants the Department of Defense (DoD) expanded authority to neutralize threats from unmanned aircraft systems (drones) operating outside of the United States. This legislation delegates response authority, clarifies mitigation methods like remote identification, and exempts security details regarding these operations from public disclosure. Furthermore, it limits the application of certain criminal and security laws to authorized DoD and Coast Guard activities aimed at countering these aerial threats overseas.

The Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act prohibits covered entities from denying an organ transplant or related services solely because an individual has a disability. The bill mandates reasonable modifications to policies and requires consideration of an individual's support network when assessing their ability to comply with post-transplant requirements. This ensures that qualified individuals receive equal access to the entire organ transplant process, from evaluation through aftercare.

The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act of 2025 establishes a presumption that certain cancers leading to death or disability in public safety officers were caused by on-duty exposure to recognized carcinogens. This law defines specific exposure-related cancers and sets conditions, such as five years of service, for the presumption to apply. It also updates review processes for adding new cancers to the list and grants retroactive application and filing extensions for eligible past and present claims.

The Restoring WIFIA Eligibility Act of 2025 modifies how the federal government budgets for certain financial assistance provided under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA). This bill stipulates that if loan repayments for water infrastructure projects come entirely from non-Federal sources, the assistance must be counted as a direct loan or loan guarantee for budgetary scoring purposes. This change effectively treats these specific WIFIA loans as non-Federal financing in the federal budget.

The Efficient Nuclear Licensing Hearings Act aims to streamline and accelerate the process for issuing atomic energy licenses by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). This bill allows the NRC to generally skip mandatory public hearings for certain permits and licenses unless an affected party requests one. If no hearing is requested, the NRC can proceed after a thirty-day notice period, utilizing informal procedures when hearings are held. These changes apply immediately to pending applications.

The Kids Online Safety Act establishes a comprehensive "duty of care" requiring online platforms to design features that mitigate specific harms to minors, such as those related to mental health and exploitation. It mandates that platforms provide minors with default, restrictive safety settings and robust parental controls over data sharing and recommendations. Furthermore, the legislation demands significant transparency regarding algorithmic ranking systems and grants the FTC enforcement authority.

This resolution condemns the acceptance of substantial gifts, such as presidential aircraft, from foreign governments, citing serious national security and foreign influence concerns. It asserts that accepting such gifts violates the Constitution's Emoluments Clause and undermines public trust. The measure demands that the President must receive explicit Congressional approval before accepting any significant foreign gift.

This resolution officially designates the week of May 11 through May 17, 2025, as "National Police Week." It serves to honor the valor and integrity of law enforcement officers across the nation. The resolution specifically remembers the officers killed in the line of duty during 2024 and encourages the public to observe this week to show appreciation for law enforcement personnel.

This resolution calls for the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to address the severe crisis facing civilians in Gaza, highlighting widespread hunger and the collapse of essential services due to blocked aid. It urges the Administration to immediately use all diplomatic tools to secure the release of hostages, lift the blockade on aid, and work toward a lasting end to the fighting.

The Primary Care Enhancement Act of 2025 updates tax rules for direct primary care service arrangements, allowing monthly subscription fees up to \$150 to qualify as deductible medical expenses. This legislation ensures that participation in these arrangements does not disqualify individuals from contributing to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). The \$150 limit will be adjusted for inflation starting in 2027.

This bill establishes the Artificial Intelligence Public Awareness and Education Campaign Act to launch a national effort aimed at increasing public understanding of how AI is used daily. The campaign, led by the Secretary of Commerce, will focus on boosting consumer literacy regarding AI's capabilities, limitations, and associated risks like deepfakes and fraud. It mandates the development of accessible, multi-lingual educational materials and requires annual reporting on the campaign's success metrics for five years.

The Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act mandates that health plans cover medically necessary diagnosis and treatment for congenital anomalies or birth defects affecting the eyes, ears, teeth, mouth, or jaw. This coverage must apply to outpatient and inpatient care, including necessary dental and orthodontic support, unless the procedure is purely cosmetic. These new requirements take effect for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2026.