Rep. Beth Van Duyne

Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025 This bill imposes sanctions on certain foreign persons (individuals and entities) that are involved in Iran's petroleum sector as well as certain associated persons. The bill also requires or authorizes actions to facilitate the enforcement of sanctions on Iran. Specifically, the bill requires the President to impose visa- and property-blocking sanctions on any foreign person that, after the bill's enactment, knowingly engages in any transaction related to the processing, export, or sale of oil, condensates, gas, liquefied natural gas, or other petrochemical products in whole or in part from Iran. The President must also impose sanctions on certain foreign persons associated with a sanctioned individual or entity. For example, the President must sanction the subsidiaries and corporate officers of a sanctioned business. The bill provides certain exceptions to these sanctions, including specifying that sanctions do not apply to the importation of goods or to conducting or facilitating transactions for humanitarian assistance. The Department of State must establish an interagency working group that shall seek to establish a multilateral contact group to coordinate international efforts to enforce sanctions on Iran. The bill expands the State Department rewards program to authorize a reward payment to any individual who furnishes information leading to the identification of a person (1) subject to sanctions under this bill, or (2) that has attempted or is attempting to evade sanctions under this bill.

Maddy summaryHR 7871 (MVP Act) updates Medicaid drug rebate rules to allow manufacturers to report multiple "best price points" for drugs sold under outcome-based payment arrangements, requiring these arrangements to be offered to all states. It clarifies how average manufacturer price is calculated for such drugs and exempts certain outcome-linked payments from anti-kickback laws. The bill also mandates a GAO study to assess whether these arrangements improve patient access, lower costs, and reduce disparities in drug coverage. This affects Medicaid programs nationwide, drug manufacturers, and patients receiving covered outpatient drugs under Medicaid.

Maddy summaryThis bill, titled the Stop Unemployment Fraud Act, requires states to verify the identity of unemployment compensation claimants using government-issued IDs and supporting documents like utility bills or lease agreements. It mandates that states use data-matching systems to cross-check claimant information against employment records, new hire directories, and databases of incarcerated or deceased individuals to detect and prevent fraud. The legislation also prohibits relying solely on a claimant's self-attestation to prove eligibility and strengthens work search requirements by mandating that claimants maintain and submit weekly records of job search activities. Additionally, the bill allows states to use up to 5% of recovered overpayments or collected contributions to fund fraud prevention efforts, technology modernization, and proper employment classification programs.

Maddy summaryHR 7678, the Gun Owner Registration Information Protection Act, prohibits federal funding for state or local databases that track lawfully owned firearms or their owners. The bill allows federal funding for databases recording lost or stolen firearms but bans it for databases listing legal gun ownership. This means states cannot use federal money to create or maintain systems that compile information about legally owned guns. The bill directly affects state and local governments that rely on federal funds for firearm ownership databases.

Maddy summaryHRES 1076 is a House resolution recognizing the 10th anniversary of the first U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export shipment from the lower 48 states, which occurred on February 24, 2016. The resolution celebrates this milestone as a historic achievement in American energy production, highlighting its role in supporting over 273,000 annual jobs and $400 billion in economic growth over the past decade. It honors the workers and communities involved and acknowledges LNG exports' contribution to U.S. economic growth, energy security, and global partnerships. The resolution has no binding effect or policy changes - it solely expresses recognition of a past event.

Law-Enforcement Innovate to De-Escalate Act This bill removes less-than-lethal projectile devices (e.g., certain TASERs) from regulation under the Gun Control Act. The term less-than-lethal projectile device means a device that (1) is not designed or intended to expel (and may not be readily converted to discharge) commonly used ammunition or projectiles exceeding a velocity of 500 feet per second; (2) is designed and intended to be used in a manner not likely to cause death or serious bodily injury; and (3) does not accept (and cannot be readily modified to accept) an ammunition feeding device. The bill also requires the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to determine whether a device satisfies the definition of a less-than-lethal projectile device within 90 days of a request.

Maddy summaryHR 7592 requires key energy regulatory agencies - including the Department of Energy, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Office of Surface Mining, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission - to set expiration dates for specific energy-related regulations. Existing regulations must expire within one year of enactment, while new regulations expire after five years unless renewed. Renewal requires public comment on costs/benefits and agency determination that the regulation has a "net deregulatory effect," with extensions limited to five years per renewal. If not renewed, regulations cease to be enforceable and are removed from federal rules. The bill directly affects how these agencies manage energy and environmental regulations under specific statutes like the Energy Policy Act and Surface Mining Control Act.

Maddy summaryHR 7539, the SAFE Act, requires the Comptroller General to study "chameleon carriers" (motor carriers evading safety rules by changing names or ownership) and develop an automated tool for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to detect such applicants during Department of Transportation (DOT) number registration. The bill mandates the tool to identify patterns like shared ownership, similar addresses, insurance lapses, or continuity of operations to flag suspicious applications. It directly affects motor carriers applying for DOT numbers and FMCSA staff, who must use the tool to review applications while preserving final decision-making authority. The law also requires an appeals process for denied applications, data privacy safeguards, and a two-year effectiveness report on the tool.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes the United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative to accelerate joint development and integration of defense technologies between the two countries. It directs the U.S. Secretary of Defense, with Israel’s agreement, to identify Israeli-origin technologies for rapid adoption into U.S. military systems, focusing on areas like counter-drone systems, missile defense (including "Golden Dome for America"), AI, cyber defense, and directed energy. The initiative requires annual congressional reporting on progress, partnerships with industry, and technology transitions, while authorizing $150 million annually for fiscal years 2027-2029. It aims to strengthen bilateral defense innovation and streamline the use of Israeli technologies within U.S. military programs.

Maddy summaryHR 7409, the Defend Rural Health Act of 2026, prevents rural hospitals from being reclassified as urban Medicare facilities after October 1, 2029, unless they met specific criteria before October 1, 2026. The bill amends Medicare rules to block hospitals from retaining rural status beyond 2029, even if they applied for reclassification earlier. It also prohibits the Medicare Geographic Classification Review Board from approving new reclassification requests for hospitals already treated as rural under current rules for fiscal years starting after October 1, 2026. This directly affects rural hospitals that rely on higher Medicare payments tied to their geographic classification. The law aims to maintain stable funding for rural hospitals by restricting future reclassifications.