Rep. Jim Costa

Maddy summaryHRES 729 is a symbolic resolution designating September 17, 2025, as "Constitution Day" to honor the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Constitution's signing (September 17, 1787). It does not create new laws or affect any specific group; instead, it urges the American public to observe the day with ceremonies and activities. The resolution emphasizes the Constitution's historical significance and its role in establishing American democracy. As a commemorative measure, it has no binding effect on policy or governance.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the 988 Suicide Prevention Lifeline to establish a dedicated "Press 3" option (via IVR) for LGBTQ+ youth seeking crisis support, directly affecting LGBTQ+ youth who face a four times higher suicide risk than peers. It mandates that at least 9% of funds allocated for the lifeline's services be reserved specifically for these specialized LGBTQ+ youth services. The bill amends existing law to formalize this dedicated resource, building on current services that handled over 1.5 million contacts from LGBTQ+ youth in 2025. This creates a concrete policy change for accessing tailored crisis support without altering other lifeline operations.

Maddy summaryThe FAMILY Act would establish a national paid family and medical leave insurance program that provides wage replacement benefits for workers needing time off for caregiving or medical reasons. It defines "qualified caregiving" to include caring for a family member with a serious health condition, personal medical needs, or recovery from violence (including domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking). Benefits would be calculated based on earnings, with a minimum monthly benefit of $580 and maximum of $4,000, administered by a new Office of Paid Family and Medical Leave within the Social Security Administration. Eligible individuals would need to have worked for at least 8 quarters in the previous year and file an application with required documentation, while existing state paid leave programs would continue to operate alongside this federal program.

Saving the Civil Service Act This bill generally prohibits changes to the classification of positions in the competitive service and excepted service unless certain conditions are met. (Competitive service positions are subject to competitive examination while excepted service positions are appointed under one of five schedules. Competitive service positions have notice and appeal requirements for adverse actions that are not applicable to most excepted positions, including those of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character under Schedule C.) On October 21, 2020, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that placed executive agency positions that are of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character, and that are not normally subject to change as a result of a presidential transition, under a new Schedule F in the excepted service. The order was subsequently revoked by President Joe Biden. The bill prohibits executive agency positions in the competitive service from being placed in the excepted service, unless such positions are placed in a schedule in the excepted service as in effect on September 30, 2020. The bill also prohibits positions in the excepted service from being placed in any schedule other than the aforementioned schedules. Additionally, agencies may not (1) transfer occupied positions from the competitive or excepted service into Schedule C without the consent of the Office of Personnel Management, or (2) transfer employees in the excepted service to another schedule or transfer employees in the competitive service to the excepted service without employee consent.

Maddy summaryHRES 716 is a symbolic resolution designating September 15-19, 2025, as "National Clean Energy Week" to raise awareness about clean energy. It encourages voluntary actions like investing in clean energy technologies but does not create new laws, funding, or requirements. The resolution cites the clean energy sector's economic role (noting 8.5 million U.S. jobs in 2024 per the Department of Energy) and applauds national laboratories. As a non-binding gesture, it directly affects no individuals or entities but aims to promote existing clean energy initiatives.

Maddy summaryThe George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2025 would establish a National Police Misconduct Registry to track officer complaints, disciplinary actions, and misconduct records across all law enforcement agencies. It would require law enforcement agencies to implement body-worn camera programs with specific recording and retention policies, ban chokeholds and no-knock warrants in drug cases, and reform qualified immunity to make it easier to hold officers accountable for misconduct. The bill mandates comprehensive data collection on use of force incidents, requiring agencies to report detailed information about stops, searches, and force used, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and other demographics. These provisions would directly affect all Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies that receive federal grant funding, with requirements for policy changes, training, and data reporting.

Maddy summaryThe Azerbaijan Sanctions Review Act of 2025 requires the President to review within 180 days whether 53 specific Azerbaijani officials meet criteria for sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. These officials include military commanders, security service heads, and judges implicated in human rights violations related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The review must include a detailed justification and determine if sanctions should be imposed on individuals linked to alleged war crimes, arbitrary detention, and torture of Armenians. The bill mandates this assessment without imposing new sanctions, focusing instead on evaluating existing legal authority for action.

Maddy summaryThis bill (HR 5332) mandates a federal review of liquid cooling technologies for data centers, requiring the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to assess their research needs, costs, benefits, and market adoption within 90 days. The study will evaluate how liquid cooling compares to air cooling for efficiency, safety, and heat reuse, including waste heat capture for secondary uses. It directly affects federal agencies operating data centers (like the Department of Energy) by informing future infrastructure decisions. The GAO report and subsequent Department of Energy assessment will guide potential policy but do not fund or require adoption of liquid cooling.

Maddy summaryHR 5340 prohibits the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and public housing agencies from sharing tenant records with immigration authorities for immigration enforcement purposes. It directly affects all HUD housing program participants (including renters and applicants, regardless of immigration status) by requiring HUD to obtain written consent or a language-proficient request from the individual before disclosing their records. Key provisions include banning disclosure without consent, preventing HUD from forcing public housing agencies to share records, and mandating a 90-day compliance report to Congress detailing record security and past sharing practices. The bill aims to protect housing privacy by ensuring immigration enforcement cannot access sensitive tenant information held by HUD without explicit individual authorization.

Maddy summaryThe RESULTS Act (HR 5269) changes how Medicare calculates payment rates for clinical diagnostic laboratory tests. It requires Medicare to collect data on private payor rates for widely available non-Advanced Diagnostic Laboratory Tests (non-ADLTs) from a qualifying independent claims data entity (a national nonprofit organization meeting specific criteria) rather than relying on data reported directly by laboratories. For tests where data is unavailable, the bill establishes default payment rates based on previous years' rates adjusted for inflation. The law also requires Medicare to publicly explain payment rates with supporting data, affecting Medicare beneficiaries, clinical laboratories, and private payors that provide services covered by Medicare.