One Citizen One Vote Act This bill prohibits the Election Assistance Commission from making payments to any state or jurisdiction unless the state or jurisdiction certifies that it meets certain election standards, including that it (1) requires a photo identification for voting, and (2) does not allow noncitizens to vote in any election.
Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Act This bill establishes grant programs to address neurodegenerative diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), and contains other related provisions. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shall award grants to eligible entities for scientific research utilizing data from expanded access to investigational ALS treatments for individuals who are not otherwise eligible for clinical trials. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shall award grants to public and private entities to cover the costs of research and development of drugs that diagnose or treat ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases. HHS shall also establish the Public-Private Partnership for Neurodegenerative Diseases between the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, and at least one eligible entity (generally, an institution of higher education or a nonprofit organization). The partnership shall support the development and regulatory review of drugs that address ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases. The FDA shall publish on its website a five-year action plan for fostering the development of drugs that improve or extend the lives of people living with rare neurodegenerative diseases. The Government Accountability Office must report to Congress about the grants provided under this bill, including an analysis of the impact of such grants on research and development of treatments for ALS.
Make Energy Affordable Act This bill requires the President to report on the rising energy prices. In addition, the President must provide updates on residential energy price trends, impacts of energy prices on low-income households, and actions by federal agencies to mitigate energy price increases.
This bill posthumously provides for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of the 13 service members who died on August 26, 2021, while stationed at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan.
Preserving Rights Of Tenants by Ensuring Compliance To the Second Amendment Act or the PROTECT the Second Amendment Act This bill establishes a right for a resident of covered federally assisted rental housing to lawfully possess a firearm within the residential dwelling unit occupied by the resident and any common area of the federally assisted rental housing in which the resident resides in the course of entering or exiting the rental housing.
Strategic Production Response Act This bill limits the drawdown of petroleum in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve until the Department of Energy develops a plan to increase the percentage of federal lands leased for oil and gas production.
Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 This bill revises provisions related to ocean shipping policies and is designed to support the growth and development of U.S. exports and promote reciprocal trade in the common carriage of goods by water in the foreign commerce of the United States. Among other provisions, the bill sets forth requirements for operating a shipping exchange involving ocean transportation in the foreign commerce of the United States; requires ocean common carriers to report to the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) each calendar quarter on total import and export tonnage and the total loaded and empty 20-foot equivalent units per vessel that makes port in the United States; requires the FMC to publish and annually update all its findings of false certifications by ocean common carriers or marine terminal operators and all penalties assessed against such carriers or operators; revises annual reporting requirements for the FMC on foreign laws and practices to include practices by ocean common carriers; prohibits ocean common carriers and marine terminal operators from retaliating or discriminating against shippers because such shippers have patronized another carrier, or filed a complaint; directs the FMC to establish rules prohibiting ocean common carriers and marine terminal operators from adopting and applying unjust and unreasonable demurrage and detention fees; authorizes the FMC to initiate investigations of an ocean common carrier's fees or charges and apply enforcement measures, as appropriate; directs the Department of Transportation to seek to enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to study the U.S. supply chain industry, including data constraints that impede the flow of maritime cargo and add to supply chain inefficiencies; and provides authority for the FMC to issue an emergency order requiring ocean common carriers or marine terminal operators to share directly with relevant shippers, rail carriers, or motor carriers information relating to cargo throughput and availability.
Department of Veterans Affairs Telehealth Strategy Ac t This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to submit a strategy to Congress for the telehealth services furnished by the Veterans Health Administration. Additionally, the VA must report on the utilization of end-user devices provided to veterans by the VA to facilitate telehealth during FY2020 and FY2021.
Crucial Communism Teaching Act This bill directs the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation to develop a civic education curriculum and oral history resources for high school students to promote understanding of certain political ideologies (e.g., communism and totalitarianism) that conflict with principles of U.S. democracy.
Conscience Protection Act of 2021 This bill provides statutory authority for certain protections for health care providers that refuse to participate in abortions based on religious beliefs or other convictions. Health care providers include individual professionals, medical facilities, health insurance organizations, and social services providers that refer clients to health care services. The federal government and entities that receive federal funding for health-related activities, including state and local governments, may not discriminate against a health care provider that refuses to be involved in, or provide coverage for, abortions. Currently, similar requirements apply to various related activities, including certain employment or personnel decisions (the Church Amendments), abortion services training (the Coats-Snowe Amendment), qualified health plans offered through health insurance exchanges, and annual appropriations bills for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and other federal agencies (the Weldon Amendment). The HHS Office for Civil Rights must investigate complaints of this kind of discrimination. Furthermore, HHS may terminate or reduce HHS funding for health-related activities if a person or entity fails to comply with nondiscrimination requirements. Additionally, the Department of Justice or any entity adversely affected by such discrimination may bring a civil action to obtain appropriate relief. A plaintiff does not need to seek or exhaust administrative remedies before bringing the action. A plaintiff may also bring an action, including one for money damages, against a governmental entity. In many cases, principles of sovereign immunity shield states and some localities from these kinds of actions.
