Legislative Activity

This resolution honors Hampden-Sydney College as it approaches its 250th anniversary in 2025. It recognizes the college's enduring commitment to liberal arts education, civic responsibility, and developing consequential leaders. The House of Representatives commends the institution for its historical significance and its ongoing contributions to Virginia and the nation.

The REMIT Act significantly increases the excise tax on remittance transfers sent abroad by U.S. persons from 1% to 15%. This new tax is waived if the sender is verified as a U.S. citizen or national by a qualified money transfer provider. U.S. citizens who pay the tax can claim it back as a refundable income tax credit, subject to new reporting requirements for both senders and transfer companies.

The Peace Through Strength Act of 2025 officially renames the Department of Defense to the Department of War. This change, which also renames the Secretary of Defense to the Secretary of War, aims to better reflect the nation's resolve and willingness to fight to protect its interests. The Act mandates that all references to the former name throughout the U.S. Code and official documents be updated to reflect the new title.

The Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Act establishes two main initiatives to improve the District: a temporary federal-local program to clean up public spaces, remove graffiti, and restore monuments, and a new federal commission focused on enhancing public safety. This commission will coordinate federal efforts regarding immigration enforcement, support local police recruitment and crime reduction, streamline gun permit processing, and increase federal law enforcement presence. Both the beautification program and the commission are scheduled to automatically terminate on January 2, 2029.

The Border Wall Status Act mandates the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a public, online tracker on the DHS website. This tracker will provide transparent, up-to-date information regarding active border wall construction and overall progress. The goal is to make the status of border wall projects easily accessible to the public.

The FAIR Act prohibits state utility regulators from approving electricity rates for utilities that engage in certain Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices or use Environmental, Social, or Governance (ESG) factors in their rate-setting decisions. This legislation places strict limitations on utility considerations, banning rates tied to practices that discriminate or enforce specific ideological training based on protected characteristics. Utilities may only consider ESG factors if strictly mandated by existing Federal or State law.

The VA Data Transparency and Trust Act mandates significant, detailed annual reporting from both the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) for five years. This new law requires comprehensive data on veteran care, demographics, benefit recipients, and claims processing times to be made public. Furthermore, it establishes secure, anonymized data-sharing systems to allow approved researchers access to detailed VHA and VBA information.

The Manned Aircraft Clarification Act updates federal criminal statutes to explicitly limit penalties for aircraft destruction and piracy to **manned aircraft**. This ensures that existing severe penalties specifically target actions against aircraft with people on board. The bill revises language in Title 18 and Title 49 of the U.S. Code to reflect this focus on manned operations.

The "Uranium for Energy Independence Act of 2025" designates uranium as a critical mineral, overriding any existing exclusions for fuel minerals. This inclusion mandates that uranium be listed as a critical mineral on the 2022 list published by the United States Geological Survey and all future lists, as required by the Energy Act of 2020.

The "Agricultural and Forestry Hauling Efficiency Act" enables Virginia to issue special permits for agricultural vehicles, allowing them to operate on the Interstate System with a weight of up to 90,000 pounds. These permits apply to vehicles transporting unprocessed agricultural crops or raw forest products.