Rep. Barry Loudermilk

Entrepreneurs Need Timely Replenishment (for) Eating Establishments Act or the ENTRÉE Act This bill provides FY2021 supplemental appropriations for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund and modifies requirements related to administration of the fund. The fund was established in response to COVID-19 to make grants to eligible food and beverage purveyors for covering specified costs such as payroll, operational expenses, and paid sick leave. The bill correspondingly rescinds unobligated amounts previously made available for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and coronavirus state and local fiscal recovery funds. Further, the bill requires the Small Business Administration (SBA) to (1) review and process grant applications in the order in which they are received; (2) impose requirements on applicants that reduce waste, fraud, and abuse; and (3) submit and report monthly on an oversight and audit plan outlining the SBA's policies, procedures, and activities with respect to these grants.

Everyday Philanthropist Act This bill allows employers to offer certain employees a tax-advantaged flexible giving account as a fringe benefit. Flexible giving accounts allow employees to set aside up to $2,700 of their annual pretax earnings to make tax-deductible charitable contributions without having to itemize tax deductions.

IRS Customer Service Improvement Act This bill prohibits the use of official time for specified union activities by employees of the Internal Revenue Service during the period each year beginning on February 12 and ending on April 15.

This resolution expresses support for the designation of Journeyman Lineworkers Recognition Day. (A journeyman lineworker is a person who builds and maintains electrical power systems.)

Alleviating Stress Test Burdens To Help Investors Act This bill exempts certain financial companies not primarily regulated by either a federal banking agency or the Federal Housing Finance Agency from requirements to conduct stress tests. These stress tests evaluate the ability of companies to absorb losses as a result of adverse economic conditions. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission may require exempted financial companies under their regulatory authority to conduct stress tests.

The bill directs the Joint Committee on the Library to remove the bust of Roger Brooke Taney in the Old Supreme Court Chamber of the Capitol and to obtain a bust of Clarence Thomas with which to replace it.

Vaccine Passport Prevention Act of 2021 This bill generally prohibits governments from issuing vaccine passports (i.e., standard documentation other than health records to certify an individual's COVID-19 vaccination status to a third party) and discrimination based on an individual's COVID-19 vaccination status or post-transmission recovery. Specifically, the federal government may not issue any vaccine passport or discriminate based on an individual's COVID-19 vaccination or recovery status by requiring documentation of the status as a condition of receiving a benefit or service. In addition, the federal government (except for the Department of Defense) may not mandate COVID-19 vaccines as a condition of federal employment. Furthermore, the bill prohibits, as a condition of receiving certain COVID-19 relief funds, states, tribal nations, and localities from issuing vaccine passports or engaging in discrimination by requiring documentation of an individual's COVID-19 vaccination or recovery status. Additionally, the bill prohibits private entities that offer products or services affecting interstate commerce from requiring documentation of an individual's COVID-19 vaccination or recovery status in order to obtain a product or service. It also establishes a private right of action for individuals who experience such discrimination by private entities. The bill also provides an exception to allow kindergartens, elementary and secondary schools, and institutions of higher education to mandate COVID-19 vaccines as a condition of enrollment. However, the Department of Education may not award financial assistance to any school that requires COVID-19 vaccines without also providing for exemptions based on (1) religious or conscientious beliefs, (2) medical reasons, and (3) natural immunity from COVID-19.

Countering Hizbollah in Lebanon's Military Act of 2021 This bill limits the use of security assistance funds for Lebanon until certain conditions are met. Specifically, 20% of funds appropriated or made available for such security assistance may not be obligated or expended until the President certifies to Congress that (1) the Lebanese Armed Forces have taken measurable steps to limit or expel Hezbollah-influenced military personnel that have significant influence over the Lebanese Armed Forces' policies or activities, (2) activities of the Lebanese Armed Forces to disarm Hezbollah demonstrate a serious commitment to fulfill United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 calling for such disarmament, and (3) the Lebanese Armed Forces have not cooperated or partnered with Hezbollah during the last year. The President may waive the first two requirements if it is in U.S. national security interest to do so.

Reopening to address Every COmplete Record request for Devoted Servicemembers Act of 2021 or the RECORDS Act of 2021 This bill directs the Office of the Archivist of the United States to take specified steps to address record request backlogs. Specifically, the office must take actions to ensure that (1) the number of individuals employed by the National Personnel Records Center is equal to or exceeds the number of such individuals employed on March 2, 2020, and (2) the percentage of such individuals regularly reporting to work in person is equal to or exceeds the percentage of such individuals regularly reporting to work in person on that date. The office shall submit to specified congressional committees a report that provides a comprehensive plan to address the record request backlog of the National Personnel Records Center and improve the efficiency and responsiveness of operations at the center, identifies measurable goals with respect to the comprehensive plan and metrics for tracking progress toward such goals, and describes strategies to prevent future record request backlogs.

This concurrent resolution establishes the Joint Select Committee on the Events and Activities Surrounding China's Handling of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus to investigate and report to Congress and the executive branch specified information related to the coronavirus (i.e., the virus that causes COVID-19) pandemic. This report must include the origins and causes of the coronavirus; certain coronavirus-related policies, decisions, and activities by the government of China; accountability for policies, decisions, and activities related to influencing the World Health Organization's response to the coronavirus outbreak; vulnerabilities of the U.S. domestic and global supply chain to a global pandemic due to reliance on Chinese manufacturing; information related to lessons learned from China's handling of the coronavirus; and recommended actions the federal government should take in response to China's handling of the coronavirus.