Rep. Darin LaHood

Springfield Race Riot National Historic Monument Act This bill establishes the Springfield Race Riot National Historic Monument in Illinois as a unit of the National Park System. The monument shall preserve, protect, and interpret the resources associated with the Springfield Race Riot of 1908 and its role in the forming of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Catastrophic Risk Transfer Act of 2023 or the CART Act of 2023 This bill establishes a system for the taxation of catastrophic risk transfer companies and their security holders to ensure sufficient capital to cover catastrophic insurance losses. The bill defines catastrophic risk as a risk of loss that has a low likelihood of occurring but that would be large in amount. The bill defines catastrophic risk transfer company as any domestic corporation created and regulated under state law with the purpose of entering into one or more insurance or reinsurance agreements covering catastrophic risk.

Maddy summaryHR 734, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023, amends Title IX to prohibit federally funded schools and athletic programs from allowing individuals assigned male at birth to participate in women's or girls' sports teams. The bill defines "sex" for this purpose as "reproductive biology and genetics at birth," making it a violation of federal law to permit such participation in designated women's or girls' programs. It allows males to train with women's teams only if no female is deprived of a roster spot, competition opportunity, scholarship, or other benefit tied to the team. This law directly affects public and private schools receiving federal financial assistance that operate athletic programs.

Maddy summaryHR 2756, the Taiwan Cybersecurity Resiliency Act of 2023, requires the U.S. Secretary of Defense to seek expanded military cybersecurity cooperation with Taiwan's government within 180 days of enactment. The bill directs the Department of Defense to work with Taiwan on defending military networks and systems, eradicating cyber threats, using U.S. cybersecurity technology, and conducting joint training exercises. It also mandates a congressional briefing detailing the feasibility of this cooperation, potential challenges, and resources needed. The bill directly affects U.S. military commands (Cyber Command, Indo-Pacific Command) and the Government of Taiwan, focusing solely on establishing a framework for dialogue and reporting, without creating new funding or binding commitments.

Maddy summaryHR 2788, the AIM Act, permanently extends a tax provision allowing businesses to deduct certain depreciation, amortization, or depletion costs when calculating their business interest expense limits. This change directly affects businesses that calculate business interest deductions under the Internal Revenue Code. The bill removes the previous expiration date (for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2022), making the deduction rule permanent for all future taxable years. It does not alter the underlying tax rules but ensures the specific deduction method remains available indefinitely.

American Innovation and R&D Competitiveness Act of 2023 This bill eliminates the five-year amortization requirement for research and experimental expenditures, thus allowing continued expensing of such expenditures in the taxable years in which they are incurred.

Maddy summaryHJRES 27 is a congressional resolution seeking to block a federal rule that redefined which waterways fall under the Clean Water Act's protections. It targets a rule submitted by the Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense, and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on January 18, 2023, which aimed to revise the "Waters of the United States" definition. The resolution would formally disapprove this rule under a specific federal procedure (Chapter 8 of Title 5), preventing it from taking effect. This would directly affect how federal agencies regulate pollution and development near water bodies, including wetlands and smaller streams.

Maddy summaryThe VA Same-Day Scheduling Act of 2023 requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to schedule appointments for enrolled veterans during the same phone call when they request care. This applies to veterans enrolled in the VA healthcare system who contact the VA by phone to request appointments. The law mandates that the VA must complete the scheduling during the call - without delay or future scheduling - regardless of the appointment date. The requirement takes effect 120 days after the bill is enacted.

Maddy summaryHR 2630, the Safe Step Act, requires group health plans and health insurance issuers to establish a clear, transparent process for patients or their doctors to request exceptions to medication step therapy protocols. These protocols typically force patients to try cheaper drugs first before covering more expensive alternatives. The bill mandates that plans must approve exceptions when prior treatments failed, delay would cause serious harm, a treatment is unsafe, or a patient is stable on a previously approved drug, with strict 72-hour (or 24-hour in emergencies) decision timelines. It also requires plans to publish the exception process online and limit documentation requests to only necessary medical information. This law directly affects health insurers, employers offering health plans, and patients using step therapy for prescription drugs.

Maddy summaryHR 2434, the Next Generation Fuels Act of 2023, requires automobile manufacturers to design vehicles for model years 2028 and later to operate with gasoline containing up to 25% ethanol (2028-2032) or 30% ethanol (2033+) and to be compatible with gasoline having a research octane number of 95 or higher (2028-2032) or 98 or higher (2033+). Fuel retailers must install equipment to ensure compatibility with these high-octane, high-ethanol fuels, while refiners must meet specific requirements for gasoline aromatics content and low-carbon fuel standards. The bill mandates labeling requirements to inform consumers about fuel compatibility and potential consequences of using lower-octane fuels. EPA must determine nationwide availability of 98 octane gasoline by 2031 before the full requirements take effect in 2033, affecting automobile manufacturers, fuel retailers, and refiners through changes in vehicle design, fuel composition, and consumer information standards.