Rep. Scott H. Peters

Hospitality and Commerce Job Recovery Act of 2021 This bill extends existing and establishes new tax credits that assist the hospitality and restaurant industry. Specifically, it allows a conventionand trade show restart tax credit; extends the employee retention tax credit through 2021; suspends for taxable years 2021 through 2022, the limitation on entertainment expenses related to a trade or business, allows a restaurant and dining restart credit for businesses closed or forced to reduce services due to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019); allows a 50% tax credit for travel expenditures; and allows a tax credit for unmerchantable inventory for the period between December 31, 2019, and before April 1, 2021.

This resolution recognizes essential employees with disabilities for their efforts during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic.

This resolution expresses support for the goals and ideas of Endometriosis Awareness Month. Endometriosis is a painful condition in which the tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus grows outside the uterus.

This bill provides authority for the Drug Enforcement Administration to pay a cash award to an employee who maintains proficiency in a mission-critical language or who uses a foreign language in the performance of official duties.

Living Donor Protection Act of 2021 This bill prohibits certain insurance carriers from discriminating against, and provides other protections for, living organ donors. Specifically, carriers may not deny, cancel, or otherwise impose conditions on policies for life insurance, disability insurance, or long-term care insurance based on an individual's status as a living organ donor. The bill also expressly specifies that recovery from organ-donation surgery constitutes a serious health condition that entitles eligible employees to job-protected medical leave. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services must update educational materials on live organ donation to include information about the benefits of live organ donation and about access to insurance for living organ donors.

Next Generation Entrepreneurship Corps Act This bill establishes the Next Generation Entrepreneurship Corps Program to promote entrepreneurship in the most distressed regions of the United States, including those regions affected by COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019), by awarding participating fellows a two-year stipend to start and grow a new small business. Fellows will receive (1) a $120,000, two-year stipend for living and basic startup expenses; (2) health care; and (3) interest-free federal student loan deferral for two years. Further, fellows shall receive mentorship from the Service Corps of Retired Executives and be matched with a full range of lenders, investors, and insurers. The bill also establishes a fund in the Department of the Treasury from which the SBA may provide loans for qualified investors to support a small business owned and operated under the program by a fellow.

West Coast Ocean Protection Act of 2021 This bill prohibits the Department of the Interior from issuing a lease for the exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas in any area of the Outer Continental Shelf off the coast of California, Oregon, or Washington.

Opioid Patients' Right to Know Act of 2021 This bill requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to award grants to states to educate health care providers about opioid prescribing practices. To receive a grant, a state must have a law or regulation that requires providers to, before issuing an initial opioid prescription to treat acute pain, inform patients about the risks of opioids and the availability of non-opioid treatment alternatives. States must use the grants to educate providers about relevant laws or regulations and safe opioid prescribing recommendations.

Protecting Local Authority and Neighborhoods Act or the PLAN Act This bill limits liability protection that applies to a provider of an interactive computer service that facilitates the lease or rental of real property (e.g., Airbnb) in violation of a state law or contractual agreement, such as a lease provision prohibiting short-term rentals. Current law protects providers and users of such services from liability for information provided by third parties, subject to specified exceptions. This bill removes that protection for providers that facilitate certain real estate transactions if the provider (1) receives written notice that a lease or rental violates a law or contractual agreement, and (2) subsequently facilitates the lease or rental in a manner restricted by the applicable law or contractual agreement. The bill also expressly preserves the authority of a state or locality to enforce laws that restrict a provider of an interactive computer service from booking, or providing ancillary services for, a transaction for the lease or rental of real property.

This bill makes certain full-time health care practitioners eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Specifically, the bill extends program eligibility to health care practitioners who work at a nonprofit or public hospital or facility but are prohibited under state law from being directly employed by the hospital or facility.