Veterans' Cyber Risk Awareness Act This bill requires the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct a communications and outreach campaign to educate veterans about cyber risks . These risks can include disinformation, identity theft, scams, and fraud spread via the internet or social media. Additionally, the VA must seek to enter an agreement with a federally funded research and development corporation to perform a study that assesses (1) the vulnerability of veterans to cyber risks, (2) the availability and efficacy of resources to assist veterans in combatting such risks, and (3) the efficacy of the VA's outreach campaign. The study must also recommend ways the VA can reduce cyber risks to veterans.
Rep. Joe Neguse
Sponsored bills
Kenneth P. Thompson Begin Again Act This bill expands eligibility for the expungement of records related to a first-time drug possession offense. Current law permits expungement for offenders who commit the offense before age 21. This bill permits expungement for offenders who commit the offense at any age.
Educators Expense Deduction Modernization Act of 2022 This bill increases the tax deduction for the expenses of eligible educators from $250 to $1,000, An eligible educator is, with respect to any taxable year, an individual who is a kindergarten through grade 12 teacher, instructor, counselor, principal, or aide in a school for at least 900 hours during a school year.
Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act This bill requires private health insurance plans to cover diagnosis and treatment of congenital anomalies and birth defects, such as reconstructive services and items. Coverage must include services and items that functionally improve, repair, or restore any body part that is medically necessary for normal bodily functions or appearance, as determined by the treating physician. Coverage limits and cost-sharing requirements for such services and items may not be more restrictive than those applicable to all medical and surgical benefits under the plan.
Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act or the MORE Act This bill decriminalizes marijuana. Specifically, it removes marijuana from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act and eliminates criminal penalties for an individual who manufactures, distributes, or possesses marijuana. The bill also makes other changes, including the following: replaces statutory references to marijuana and marihuana with cannabis , requires the Bureau of Labor Statistics to regularly publish demographic data on cannabis business owners and employees, establishes a trust fund to support various programs and services for individuals and businesses in communities impacted by the war on drugs, imposes an excise tax on cannabis products produced in or imported into the United States and an occupational tax on cannabis production facilities and export warehouses, makes Small Business Administration loans and services available to entities that are cannabis-related legitimate businesses or service providers, prohibits the denial of federal public benefits to a person on the basis of certain cannabis-related conduct or convictions, prohibits the denial of benefits and protections under immigration laws on the basis of a cannabis-related event (e.g., conduct or a conviction), establishes a process to expunge convictions and conduct sentencing review hearings related to federal cannabis offenses, directs the Government Accountability Office to study the societal impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis, directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to study methods for determining whether a driver is impaired by marijuana, directs the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to study the impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis on the workplace, and directs the Department of Education to study the impact of state legalization of recreational cannabis on schools and school-aged children.
Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2022 This bill makes various changes with respect to employer-sponsored retirement plans, including providing for the automatic enrollment of employees in certain plans and increasing the age at which participants are required to begin receiving mandatory distributions.
Strengthen Kids' Mental Health Now Act of 2022 This bill establishes several requirements to support the provision of behavioral health services under Medicaid and other programs, particularly for children. For example, the bill temporarily requires payment for pediatric mental, emotional, and behavioral health services under Medicaid to align with Medicare payments to providers. The bill provides for a 100% Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (i.e., federal matching rate) for any associated additional expenditures. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must issue guidance on how state Medicaid programs may expand the availability of telehealth services and mental, emotional, and behavioral health services. In addition, the Health Resources and Services Administration must award grants to support (1) pediatric behavioral health care integration in communities, (2) pediatric mental health and substance use disorder workforce training, and (3) the infrastructure of pediatric hospitals and rural health clinics with respect to behavioral health services.
Department of Veterans Affairs Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Processing Claims Improvement Act of 2021 This bill requires the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to update an ongoing national training program for claims processors who review compensation claims for service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Such claims processors will be required to participate in the training at least once a year starting in their second year of being a VA claims processor. The training program must be standardized at regional offices of the VBA and include instruction on stressor development and verification. The VBA must establish a formal process to annually analyze training needs based on identified processing error trends. Additionally, the VBA must establish a formal process to conduct annual studies to help guide the national training program for claims processors. Finally, the VBA must evaluate the guidance relating to PTSD to determine if updates are warranted to provide claims processors with better resources regarding best practices for claims processing, including specific guidance regarding development of claims involving compensation for service-connected PTSD.
Veteran Deportation Prevention and Reform Act This bill provides protections from deportation for noncitizen veterans and contains other related provisions. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) must identify each individual in removal proceedings who is a member of the Armed Forces, a veteran, or a noncitizen spouse or minor child of such an individual. That individual may not be removed until (1) ICE has transferred that individual's case files to an advisory committee created under this bill, and (2) that committee has provided recommendations as to the outcome of the case. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall create a system to share information across various agencies about noncitizen veterans who may be subject to removal to ensure that such a veteran's military service is taken into consideration in immigration-related cases. DHS shall also create a system for (1) identifying noncitizens who are or may be veterans, and (2) collecting data relating to such noncitizens who are in removal proceedings or may have been removed. DHS and the Department of Defense must jointly carry out a program to naturalize a noncitizen (and the noncitizen's spouse and minor children) who serves on active duty in the Armed Forces and is not otherwise ineligible for citizenship if that noncitizen submits an application. DHS shall also establish a program for eligible noncitizen veterans (generally those not convicted for certain serious crimes) to obtain permanent resident status. Similarly, the Department of Justice shall provide permanent resident status to such an eligible veteran in removal proceedings or subject to a final order of removal.
Emmett Till Antilynching Act This bill makes lynching a federal hate crime offense. Specifically, the bill imposes criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to 30 years, or both—on an individual who conspires to commit a hate crime offense that results in death or serious bodily injury or that includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.