Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro

Maddy summaryHR 1657, the Humane Cosmetics Act of 2025, prohibits cosmetic companies from conducting or contracting animal testing for products sold in the U.S. beginning one year after the law takes effect. It also bans the sale or transport of cosmetics developed using such testing after that date, with limited exemptions (e.g., for foreign regulatory requirements or when no non-animal safety alternatives exist). The bill directly affects cosmetic manufacturers, retailers, and distributors by requiring them to shift to non-animal testing methods. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will enforce the law, including reviewing records and imposing civil penalties for violations.

Maddy summaryThe PAST Act of 2025 amends the Horse Protection Act to ban harmful practices known as "soring," which deliberately cause pain to horses to exaggerate their gait for shows. It specifically prohibits devices like action devices (e.g., boots causing friction) and weighted shoes on Tennessee Walking Horses, Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses at events. The bill increases penalties, including escalating disqualifications for repeat offenses (180 days → 1 year → 3 years) and raises fines for violations to $5,000 per offense. It also requires stricter licensing for inspectors and mandates public posting of violation records to help event organizers enforce rules.

Maddy summaryThe American Dream and Promise Act of 2025 would create pathways to permanent residency for certain immigrant youth who entered the U.S. as children (Dream Act component) and for individuals from countries with Temporary Protected Status or Deferred Enforced Departure (American Promise Act component). To qualify, applicants must meet continuous physical presence requirements (since January 1, 2021 for Dream Act applicants, and for 3+ years for American Promise applicants), pass background checks, and satisfy educational or employment criteria. Conditional permanent resident status would be granted initially, with the option to convert to full permanent residency after meeting additional requirements like earning a degree, serving in the military for two years, or demonstrating three years of earned income. The bill includes fee exemptions for low-income applicants, establishes a grant program to assist applicants with legal help, and creates specific procedures for background checks and appeals.

Maddy summaryHR 1573, the Military and Educational Data Integration Act, requires the Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to create a secure process for state education agencies to access specific demographic data about military members and applicants who graduated from high school in that state. The data includes educational attainment, military branch, test scores, and separation dates, allowing states to integrate this information into their education systems. The bill mandates strict privacy protections, requiring confidential transmission, compliance with existing privacy laws, and secure data handling practices. It does not change military recruitment policies or create new programs, focusing solely on enabling data sharing between military and education agencies.

Maddy summaryEthan's Law requires gun owners to store firearms securely in homes where minors live or where residents are legally prohibited from owning guns. It makes it unlawful to leave firearms unsecured if a minor or ineligible person could access them, with fines of $500 per violation and harsher penalties if injury or death occurs. The bill creates a federal grant program to help states implement similar secure storage laws and treats unsafe storage as negligence in legal cases. It directly affects households with children or residents who cannot legally possess firearms, aiming to reduce accidental shootings and unauthorized access.

Maddy summaryHR 1548, the "Leveling the Playing Field 2.0 Act," amends U.S. trade laws to strengthen enforcement of antidumping and countervailing duty regulations. The bill creates new rules for handling multiple investigations on the same merchandise (successive investigations), addresses market distortions in foreign countries that affect production costs, and improves mechanisms to prevent companies from circumventing existing duties. It also establishes procedures for investigating currency undervaluation as a form of subsidy and strengthens requirements for importers to certify compliance with trade laws. These changes primarily affect U.S. importers of foreign goods, foreign exporters, and the Department of Commerce, which administers these trade enforcement mechanisms.

Maddy summaryHR 1410 expands access to mental health care for 9/11 responders and survivors by allowing licensed mental health providers (not just physicians) to conduct initial health evaluations and certifications under the World Trade Center Health Program. It adjusts the program’s funding formula to account for changing enrollment numbers by linking annual funding to the previous year’s enrollment ratio, and clarifies that deceased individuals are excluded from enrollment counts. The bill also extends the timeframe for adding new health conditions to the program’s list and requires a 2028 report assessing long-term funding needs through 2090. These changes aim to streamline eligibility, improve care access, and ensure sustainable funding for the program.

Maddy summaryHR 1321, the "Ending DOGE Conflicts Act," requires special government employees (like officials overseeing federal contracts) who own, control, or lead companies doing business with the government to file financial disclosure reports with the Office of Government Ethics. These employees must now comply with the same financial disclosure rules as other government officials under Title 5 of the U.S. Code. Until their initial report is certified as compliant by the Office of Government Ethics, these employees are prohibited from performing any official duties related to federal contracting. The bill directly affects high-level government officials with direct financial ties to federal contractors.

Fighting Trade Cheats Act of 2025 This bill increases penalties for, and establishes additional enforcement mechanisms related to, fraudulent and grossly negligent violations of U.S. customs laws. Specifically, the bill increases the maximum civil penalty for a fraudulent violation to three times the domestic value of the merchandise. (Currently, the maximum penalty is the domestic value of the merchandise.) It prohibits a person who commits a fraudulent violation from importing merchandise into the United States for a five-year period. Additionally, the bill increases the maximum civil penalty for a grossly negligent violation to the lesser of (1) 3 times the domestic value of the merchandise; or (2) 10 times the lawful duties, taxes, and fees. (Currently, the maximum penalty is the lesser of the domestic value of the merchandise or four times the lawful duties, taxes, and fees.) It prohibits a person who commits a grossly negligent violation from importing merchandise into the United States for a two-year period. Further, the bill applies these importation bans to an affiliated person (e.g., a family member or employee) of the person who committed the fraudulent or grossly negligent violation. The bill establishes a private right of action for an interested party (e.g., a manufacturer) affected by customs fraud or grossly negligent violations. The bill prohibits any person (or an affiliated person) who commits a fraudulent or grossly negligent violation from participating in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Importer of Record program, and further requires revocation of their importer of record numbers.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes a constitutional amendment stating that only "natural persons" (living humans) have rights protected by the U.S. Constitution, explicitly denying constitutional rights to corporations, LLCs, and other artificial entities. It would require governments to regulate campaign contributions and spending to prevent money from influencing elections, banning the view that spending to influence elections constitutes protected speech under the First Amendment. The amendment would not affect the constitutional right to a free press. This change would directly impact how corporations and other non-human entities can legally challenge laws or regulations in court.