Legislative Activity

This bill designates May 2nd as "National Space Day" to recognize the aerospace community's positive impact on the U.S. It acknowledges the leadership of NASA, the Space Force, and the aerospace industry in space exploration, research, and national security. The bill also highlights the importance of STEM education and inspiring young people to pursue careers in aerospace. Finally, it expresses the House of Representatives' support for National Space Day and the contributions of the aerospace community.

The "Increasing Penalties for Offshore Polluters Act" increases both civil and criminal penalties for oil spills and other pollution offenses under the Clean Water Act. The bill raises the minimum and maximum fines for civil violations, while also increasing the fines and prison terms for criminal violations, with the goal of deterring offshore polluters.

The Housing for All Act of 2025 aims to combat homelessness and address the housing shortage through increased funding for affordable housing programs, rental assistance, and supportive services. The bill authorizes billions in funding for programs like the Housing Trust Fund, Section 202 (elderly), Section 811 (disabled), and HOME Investment Partnerships Program. It also invests in community-driven solutions like safe parking programs, eviction protection, and mobile crisis intervention teams. Additionally, the act establishes a commission to address racial equity in housing and mandates studies on eviction data to inform future policy.

The "Warrant for Metadata Act" amends Title 18 of the U.S. Code to require law enforcement to obtain a warrant before compelling electronic communication or remote computing services to disclose customer records or metadata. This eliminates previous exceptions that allowed access to older electronic communications without a warrant. It ensures that obtaining subscriber information and metadata necessitates a warrant under established legal procedures.

The "Protecting Data at the Border Act" aims to protect the digital privacy of individuals entering or leaving the U.S. by requiring a warrant based on probable cause to access their electronic devices and online accounts at the border. It sets limits on how long travelers can be detained while determining consent, restricts the use of illegally obtained data as evidence, and mandates annual reporting to Congress on digital searches conducted at the border. This bill also restricts the seizure of electronic devices unless there is probable cause to believe the device contains information related to a felony.

The ENCRYPT Act of 2025 prevents states from requiring companies to alter security functions in their products or services to allow government surveillance or to decrypt encrypted information. It also stops states from banning the sale of products or services that use encryption. This bill ensures that manufacturers, developers, sellers, and providers of computer hardware, software, electronic devices, and online services cannot be forced to compromise security features for government access. The act defines "state" broadly to include all U.S. states, territories, and federally recognized Indian Tribes.

The New Collar Jobs Act of 2025 aims to expand the cybersecurity workforce through various initiatives. It creates a tax credit for businesses that invest in cybersecurity education for their employees, offers student loan repayment assistance for cybersecurity professionals working in economically distressed areas, and seeks to increase cybersecurity scholarships. The act also incentivizes cybersecurity training for government contractors and encourages increased funding for cybersecurity education programs.

The DEVICE Act of 2025 mandates medical device manufacturers to report design and reprocessing instruction changes to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and also requires them to report communications with foreign health providers regarding device changes or safety concerns. It also expands the definition of medical devices to include rapid assessment tests for proper reprocessing, and sets requirements for these tests. Non-compliance with reporting requirements can result in a device being deemed adulterated.

The "Prevent Homelessness Act of 2025" establishes a Housing Stabilization Fund, managed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, to provide grants to Continuums of Care for emergency housing assistance programs. These programs will support extremely low-income and very low-income families facing housing instability due to financial hardships. Grants can be used for rent, mortgage, utility payments, housing repairs, and other services that promote housing stability. The fund is authorized to be appropriated $100,000,000 for each fiscal year from 2027 through 2031.

Tyler's Law mandates a study by the Secretary of Health and Human Services on fentanyl testing practices in hospital emergency departments, including frequency, costs, benefits, risks, and patient experience. Following the study, the Secretary will issue guidance on routine fentanyl testing for overdose patients, ensuring clinicians are aware of substances included in drug tests, and the potential impact on future overdose risk and general health.

The ProTECT Act of 2025 amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to prohibit the taking or importing of threatened species trophies. It defines "trophy" as any dead animal or animal part, raw or processed, obtained through hunting. These prohibitions aim to prevent trophy hunting from harming wildlife conservation efforts, disrupting social structures, and masking illegal trade.

The "Improving Contractor Cybersecurity Act" mandates that IT contractors working with executive agencies establish vulnerability disclosure policies that detail reporting processes, protect good-faith researchers, and set timelines for addressing vulnerabilities. Contractors must report new vulnerabilities in commercial software to CISA within 7 days of publishing their vulnerability disclosure policy, and CISA will then communicate these vulnerabilities to relevant databases. These requirements apply to contracts entered into after the enactment of the Act.