Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove

Comprehensive Legislation for Expanding and Advancing Nonrestrictive Energy Act or the CLEAN Energy Act This bill repeals certain requirements that the Department of the Interior must meet before issuing an onshore wind or solar right-of-way for wind or solar energy development on federal land. Under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, Interior may not issue a right-of-way for such development unless (1) an onshore oil and gas lease sale has been held in the 120 days prior to issuing the right-of-way, and (2) Interior offers a specified minimum acreage for oil and gas lease sales in the previous year. The bill repeals those requirements.

Maddy summaryHR 1776, the End Tuberculosis Now Act of 2023, would amend U.S. foreign assistance law to strengthen global tuberculosis (TB) programs. The bill requires U.S. assistance to align with the World Health Organization's End TB Strategy, aiming to reduce TB deaths by 95% and incidence by 90% by 2035. It mandates annual reporting on TB diagnosis and treatment progress, prioritizes research for new diagnostics and treatments, and emphasizes integrating TB services into primary health care. The legislation affects U.S. government agencies, global health partners, and countries with high TB burdens, particularly focusing on low- and middle-income nations.

Maddy summaryHR 1684 requires the U.S. State Department to submit annual reports to Congress detailing connections between Haitian criminal gangs (such as G9 Family and 400 Mawozo) and Haitian political or economic elites. The reports must identify specific gangs, list elites with gang ties, and explain how these relationships threaten Haiti’s security and U.S. interests. Within 30 days of each report, the President must impose U.S. sanctions on identified individuals under existing laws, with lists of sanctioned persons made publicly available. The requirement lasts for five years, ending on the date the bill is enacted plus five years.

Maddy summaryHR 4889, the Raise the Wage Act of 2023, would gradually increase the federal minimum wage for most workers to $15.50 per hour by 2027, with specific annual targets: $9.50 starting in 2023, rising to $11.00 after one year, $12.50 after two years, and $15.50 after four years. It would also phase out the separate lower minimum wage for tipped employees (starting at $6.00/hour) by aligning their pay with the regular minimum wage by 2028, while requiring employers to let workers keep all tips. The bill includes similar phased increases for workers under 20 and transitions toward fairer wages for workers with disabilities under special certificates, which would sunset after 2028. Future annual increases after 2028 would tie the minimum wage to the median hourly wage of all workers.

Maddy summaryHR 4796, the Reproductive Health Patient Navigator Act of 2023, establishes a federal grant program to fund organizations that help individuals access abortion services. Eligible entities - such as abortion funds, community groups, or local governments - would receive grants to provide services like connecting people to providers, coordinating travel/financing costs, offering culturally appropriate information, and ensuring data confidentiality. The bill includes strong legal protections, prohibiting states from restricting or penalizing navigators for assisting people seeking abortion services, even in states where abortion is illegal. It also allows affected navigators to sue states that violate these protections. The program is funded for fiscal years 2023 through 2027.

Maddy summaryThe People's Response Act establishes a new Division on Community Safety within the Department of Health and Human Services to fund community-based approaches to safety that are disconnected from traditional law enforcement and criminal justice systems. It creates four grant programs totaling $13 billion over five years: one for community-led organizations serving disproportionately impacted communities (especially Black and Indigenous communities), one for local governments to conduct safety needs assessments, one for states to support statewide implementation, and one for hiring and training first responders who provide non-carceral crisis response. These grants require recipients to use "qualified approaches to community safety" that avoid collaboration with carceral institutions and prioritize organizations led by or serving communities most affected by the criminal legal system. Recipients must report on outcomes including racial disparities in arrests, incarceration, and how funds are used to address safety needs through community-led initiatives.

Maddy summaryHRES 608 is a non-binding House resolution recognizing the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts at colleges and universities. It affirms that DEI initiatives help create supportive learning environments where all students, faculty, and staff thrive, and specifically supports programs like implicit bias training and cultural competence resources. The resolution emphasizes that DEI efforts strengthen institutions’ ability to recruit diverse talent and align with academic freedom principles. It also notes concerns about state-level efforts to restrict DEI programs and states that such restrictions threaten campus inclusivity. As a symbolic resolution, it does not create new laws or funding but expresses congressional support for DEI work in higher education.

Transportation for Reentry Act This bill requires certain Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant recipients to provide free public transportation to returning individuals (i.e., individuals who have been incarcerated for at least one year in federal or state prison).  Specifically, the bill requires recipients of FTA financial assistance under the Urbanized Area Formula Grants Program and the Formula Grants for Rural Areas Program to carry out a reentry service program. A grantee must provide reentry service for a one-year period beginning on the returning individual's release date. The bill also establishes certain program requirements for grantees (e.g., to create an enrollment system for returning individuals). The Department of Transportation (DOT) may reimburse a grantee for the cost of providing the reentry service, including for indirect costs (e.g., the costs to develop and implement the program and operational costs). DOT must issue such regulations as necessary to carry out these requirements. This includes regulations that (1) promote the coordination of providing technical assistance to grantees, (2) promote the marketing of the reentry service, and (3) clarify the treatment of a returning individual who resides in different locations. The bill also directs the Government Accountability Office to submit a report to Congress on the implementation of the reentry service program.

Maddy summaryThis resolution designates August 11, 2023 as "Hip Hop Celebration Day," August 2023 as "Hip Hop Recognition Month," and November 2023 as "Hip Hop History Month." It commemorates hip hop's 50th anniversary, honoring its 1973 origins at the Bronx Back To School Jam. Federal, state, and local governments are encouraged to observe these designations through appropriate activities celebrating hip hop's cultural impact. The resolution is procedural and does not create new laws or affect specific groups.

Maddy summaryH.J.Res. 25 would remove the 1979 deadline for states to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which was originally proposed in 1972. This bill directly affects states that ratified the ERA after the deadline (such as Nevada, Illinois, and Virginia in 2017-2018) by making their ratifications legally valid. The key provision states that the ERA is valid as part of the Constitution if ratified by three-fourths of states, regardless of the original deadline. The bill does not create new rights but aims to finalize the constitutional amendment process by eliminating the time limit.