Rep. Sanford D. Bishop, Jr.

Taxpayer Research and Coronavirus Knowledge Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to coordinate with specified federal entities to compile a public database of federal contracts, tax benefits, and other support for COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) biomedical research and development. HHS must develop the database within one month and update it every two weeks.

Student Loan Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act This bill establishes temporary programs to provide federal and private student loan forgiveness to certain frontline health care workers. Frontline health care workers are those individuals who have made significant contributions to the medical response (e.g., patient care, medical research, or testing) to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) national emergency. Specifically, the Department of Education (ED) must carry out a program to forgive the outstanding balance of principal and interest due on federal student loans for borrowers who are frontline health care workers. Additionally, the Department of the Treasury must carry out a program to repay in full the outstanding balance of principal and interest due on certain private student loans for borrowers who are frontline health care workers. ED and Treasury must coordinate to ensure that eligibility determinations are consistent across both programs and that frontline health care workers who are eligible for both programs may apply for loan forgiveness with a single application. Further, such programs must be available to frontline health care workers who were borrowers of eligible loans and who died as a result of COVID-19. The bill specifies the notification requirements related to the availability of these programs. ED, Treasury, and the Department of Health and Human Services must jointly establish an intergovernmental working group to assist with the administration of these programs, including the development of the application process. The bill also excludes discharged student loan debt under these programs from an individual's gross income.

Providing Responsible Emergency Plans for Animals at Risk of E merging Disasters Act or the PREPARED Act This bill establishes requirements governing the care of animals by entities, such as zoos, in emergencies or disasters. Specifically, the bill requires each research facility, dealer, exhibitor, intermediate handler, and carrier to develop and follow a contingency plan to provide for the humane handling, treatment, transportation, housing, and care of their animals in the event of an emergency or disaster.

Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act This bill addresses employment standards for individuals with disabilities. The bill directs the Department of Labor to award grants to states and certain eligible entities to assist them in transforming their business and program models to support individuals with disabilities by providing competitive integrated employment, assisting disabled individuals in finding and retaining work in such employment, providing integrated employment and integrated community participation and wraparound services for such individuals, and ensuring that such services comply with federal regulations for individuals receiving home and community-based services. The bill also prohibits the issuance of new special certificates that allow payment of subminimum wages to disabled individuals and phases out existing certificates over a four-year period. The bill directs Labor's Office of Disability Employment to award grants to provide technical assistance and other strategic support to employers transitioning from special certificates to competitive integrated employment for disabled individuals. Labor must contract with a nonprofit entity to conduct an evaluation of the impact of these transitions.

This resolution condemns Iranian state-sponsored terrorist attacks against U.S. citizens and officials and Iranian dissidents and expresses support for the people of Iran who are engaged in legitimate and peaceful protests against the Iranian regime.

Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Act of 2021 This bill provides statutory authority for the requirement that Medicare skilled nursing facilities and Medicaid nursing facilities report data regarding COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) preparedness, testing, infections, and deaths. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must publish on the Nursing Home Compare website certain demographic information, aggregated by state, with respect to COVID-19 infections and deaths in such facilities.

Public Servants Protection and Fairness Act of 2021 This bill establishes an alternative formula to calculate Social Security retirement benefits for those who receive pensions for certain non-covered employment. (The existing formula is known as the windfall elimination provision.) The alternative formula adjusts an individual's total lifetime earnings based on the proportion of covered earnings (i.e., earnings subject to Social Security payroll taxes). It applies to individuals who (1) first become eligible for benefits after 2022, (2) have earnings from non-covered service performed after 1977, and (3) have less than 30 years of coverage (i.e., years in which a beneficiary is considered to have contributed a substantial amount into the Social Security trust funds). Beneficiaries receive the higher benefit amount as calculated under the alternative method or the existing formula. In addition, the bill provides rebates for certain beneficiaries currently impacted by the existing formula. The Social Security Administration must include non-covered earnings in Social Security account statements, and the Government Accountability Office must study the availability of certain information related to retirement plans maintained by state and local governments.

Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act of 2021 This bill increases the rehabilitation tax credit and modifies certain requirements for the credit. The bill increases the rate of the credit for qualified rehabilitation expenditures in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2019, and before January 1, 2027, after which the rate reverts to 20%. The bill increases the rate of the credit to 30% for certain small projects whose qualified rehabilitation expenditures do not exceed $2.5 million. The bill also expands the types of buildings eligible for rehabilitation by decreasing the rehabilitation threshold from 100% to 50% of project expenses. It also eliminates the basis adjustment requirement for the credit and modifies rules relating to tax-exempt use property eligible for the credit.

Military Hunger Prevention Act This bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to pay a basic needs allowance to certain low-income members of the Armed Forces. Specifically, those eligible for the basic needs allowance are members who (1) have completed initial entry training, (2) have a gross household income that did not exceed an amount equal to 130% of the federal poverty guidelines of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and (3) do not elect to decline the allowance. In situations where a household contains two or more eligible members, the bill specifies that only one allowance may be paid per year to one member they jointly elect. The amount of the allowance must be the aggregate amount equal to 130% of the HHS federal poverty guidelines minus the gross household income of the covered member during the preceding year divided by 12. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) of DOD must notify, in writing, individuals determined to be eligible for the allowance. The notice must include information regarding financial management and assistance programs administered by DOD for which the individuals are also eligible. Individuals who seek to receive the allowance must submit specified information to DFAS.

Freight Rail Assistance and Investment to Launch Coronavirus-era Activity and Recovery Act of 2021 or the Freight RAILCAR Act of 2021 This bill provides a new tax credit for 50% of freight railcar fleet modernization expenses. The bill defines freight railcar fleet modernization expenses to include amounts for railcar replacement and modernization, railcar scrap amounts, and for railcar facility and technology modernization. The Department of the Treasury must report to Congress on the credit to provide information on the number of times the credit was claimed and the number of railcars scrapped or built as a result of the credit.