Legislative Activity

The Health Access Innovation Act of 2025 establishes the Health Equity Innovation Grant Program to fund community and faith-based organizations. These grants aim to improve health outcomes for underserved populations by covering direct care costs and addressing social determinants of health. Priority will be given to groups that have demonstrated success in underserved areas, particularly those that ran access programs during past public health emergencies. The program is authorized with specific funding levels through fiscal year 2030.

The Register America to Vote Act of 2025 aims to modernize and secure voter registration nationwide by establishing automatic registration systems. This includes automatically registering citizens when they turn 18 and implementing opt-out registration through state motor vehicle agencies. The Act provides federal funding to states to upgrade technology and mandates new national security and privacy standards for handling voter data.

The Same Day Registration Act mandates that all states allow eligible citizens to register to vote or update their registration at the polling place on Election Day for any federal election. This ensures that individuals can register and cast their ballot simultaneously, provided the state does not already have a no-registration requirement. States must ensure registration forms are available at all polling locations, with full compliance generally required starting with the November 2026 general election.

The Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act invalidates pre-dispute agreements that force individuals into private arbitration for employment, consumer, antitrust, or civil rights claims. This legislation protects the right of individuals and groups to pursue legal action in court rather than being compelled into private arbitration before a dispute arises. It ensures that courts, not arbitrators, decide if this new law applies to a specific agreement. The Act takes effect immediately upon enactment.

This resolution officially recognizes September 16, 2025, as National Voter Registration Day. It encourages all eligible citizens to register to vote, verify their registration information, and participate in upcoming elections.

This Act officially establishes the Congressional Tribute to Constance Baker Motley Act of 2025 to honor the life and groundbreaking civil rights achievements of the late legal pioneer. The bill authorizes the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal to her family in recognition of her service, including her role in *Brown v. Board of Education*. Furthermore, it permits the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates of the medal to cover production costs.

This resolution officially recognizes suicide as a serious and preventable public health crisis impacting the nation, highlighting its significant role as a leading cause of death, especially among young people. It expresses strong support for designating September as National Suicide Prevention Month to raise awareness. Furthermore, the resolution advocates for prioritizing suicide prevention efforts and improving access to high-quality mental health and substance use disorder services.

The RESULTS Act of 2025 aims to significantly improve the accuracy of Medicare payment rates for common clinical diagnostic laboratory tests. It mandates that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) contract with an independent, certified entity to collect payment data from a massive, nationwide private insurance claims database. This shift ensures payment rates are based on comprehensive, validated external data rather than relying solely on self-reported information. If this external data is unavailable, default inflation-adjusted rates will apply until accurate data collection resumes.

The Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act aims to address healthcare staffing shortages by recapturing unused employment-based immigrant visas from previous years. These recaptured visas are specifically reserved for professional nurses (25,000) and physicians (15,000) to expedite their entry into the U.S. The bill also mandates premium processing for these petitions without imposing extra fees and includes worker protection attestations to prevent displacement of U.S. workers.

The Keep Billionaires Out of Social Security Act aims to protect Social Security from external government interference, specifically exempting it from the jurisdiction of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The bill also tightens restrictions on political appointees accessing beneficiary data, mandates that only verified deceased individuals are added to the Death Master File, and locks in current SSA office levels. Finally, it allocates significant new funding for improving customer service, modernizing technology, and establishing state and community grants to assist disability applicants.

The Fire Ready Nation Act of 2025 establishes a comprehensive national program within NOAA to enhance fire weather forecasting, data management, and emergency response capabilities. This legislation creates new services, including a dedicated Incident Meteorologist Service, and mandates the development of advanced fire weather models and observation tools. Furthermore, the Act focuses on modernizing data infrastructure, improving interagency coordination, and ensuring equitable access to critical fire information for all communities.

The Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act of 2025 significantly updates federal efforts to combat harmful algal blooms (HABs) and hypoxia across all U.S. waters, including freshwater systems. The bill expands the scope of the interagency Task Force, mandates the creation of a five-year national Action Strategy for HABs, and enhances monitoring and forecasting capabilities. It also clarifies agency roles, assigning EPA new duties for freshwater blooms while tasking NOAA with marine and Great Lakes response, and establishes a new incubator program for control technologies.

This Senate resolution expresses a profound lack of confidence in Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., citing numerous actions that allegedly undermine public health, scientific integrity, and the legal duties of his office. The resolution details accusations of illegal funding cuts, mass firings of career staff, and the dismantling of key advisory committees. Therefore, the Senate declares that the Secretary should be removed from his position.

The Nationwide Right To Unionize Act seeks to strengthen union organizing rights across the country. It achieves this by repealing the section of federal law that currently allows state "right-to-work" laws to override federal labor protections. This change effectively removes the federal permission for states to enforce laws prohibiting mandatory union membership or fee payment as a condition of employment.

The Student Loan Deduction Act of 2025 allows households applying for food assistance to deduct monthly student loan payments from their countable income. This deduction applies to both federal and private education loans, covering payments made for any household member. Claiming this deduction can positively impact eligibility for food assistance benefits.

The Synthetic Biology Advancement Act of 2025 establishes the National Synthetic Biology Center within the Department of Agriculture. This Center will award competitive grants to eligible research institutions to accelerate the development and deployment of synthetic biology solutions in agriculture. The goal is to enhance food security, national resilience, and sustainability through advanced biological engineering and innovation. The Act authorizes funding for both the Center's operations and the research grants through Fiscal Year 2030.

The Biobased Market Expansion Act of 2025 significantly strengthens federal requirements for purchasing biobased products by mandating annual goal increases and tightening exemptions for non-compliance. This legislation promotes U.S.-made goods by establishing domestic price advantages and improving transparency through public reporting of purchasing data and any unmet goals. Furthermore, it requires updated training for contracting officers and directs the GAO to review the program's effectiveness within two years.

The National Biotechnology Safety Act establishes a new research program, managed by the NSF, to study the potential risks associated with biotechnology products. It also mandates a two-phase study by the National Academies to compare the safety of biotech tools against traditional methods. The overall goal is to provide the necessary scientific foundation for effective federal regulation and oversight of these rapidly developing technologies.

The TRACE Act mandates updates to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) to specifically track cases occurring on federal land or in U.S. territorial waters. This legislation requires the Attorney General to add a distinct data field to record these specific locations for missing persons reports. Furthermore, the Act requires the Attorney General to submit an annual report to Congress detailing the number of missing persons cases linked to these federal jurisdictions.

The District of Columbia Police Home Rule Act eliminates the President's long-standing authority to assume emergency control over the Metropolitan Police Department. This legislation amends the D.C. Home Rule Act by striking the section granting the President this power. The bill effectively returns full, non-contingent control of the D.C. police force to local D.C. authorities.