Rep. Rudy Yakym III

Maddy summaryThe Calumet National Heritage Area Act designates a specific region in Indiana and Illinois (including parts of three Indiana counties and portions of two Illinois counties) as a National Heritage Area to preserve its cultural, historical, and natural resources. This designation directly affects local communities, organizations like the Calumet Heritage Partnership (which will coordinate efforts), and federal agencies managing the program. The bill requires the local entity to create a management plan within three years and authorizes federal assistance for up to 15 years to support conservation, education, and tourism initiatives. It focuses on protecting the area’s industrial heritage, ecological sites like Indiana Dunes National Park, and immigrant cultural history without creating new federal funding or regulatory requirements.

Essential Caregivers Act of 2025   This bill prohibits certain health care facilities from limiting the access of essential caregivers to residents of those facilities, including during designated emergency periods.   Specifically, the bill generally prohibits Medicare skilled nursing facilities, Medicaid nursing facilities, Medicaid intermediate care facilities, and associated inpatient rehabilitation facilities from restricting the access of essential caregivers to residents of the facilities, including during emergency periods in which visitation rights are otherwise restricted. During emergency periods, facilities may restrict access for an initial period of up to seven days and for one additional maximum seven-day period (if the additional period is approved by the state health department). Facilities may restrict access for a total of 7 days (or 14 days with the approval of the state health department) during an emergency period. Essential caregivers must agree to comply with any safety protocols set by the facility, which may be no more stringent for caregivers compared to those for staff. Caregivers who fail to comply with these requirements may be denied access, subject to an appeals process.

Maddy summaryHR 1098 reauthorizes the Junior Duck Stamp Conservation and Design Program, which engages students aged 9-15 in creating artwork for conservation-themed duck stamps. The bill increases annual funding for the program from $350,000 to $550,000 (2025-2031) and boosts specific allocations for design competitions ($200,000) and habitat conservation ($350,000). It also updates the definition of "State" to properly include Guam in the program's scope. The changes directly affect participating students, state wildlife agencies, and conservation groups receiving program funds.

Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act This act provides for the award of Congressional Gold Medals to the members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic men's ice hockey team in recognition of the team's achievement at the 1980 Winter Olympic Games.

Maddy summaryHR 573, the "Studying NEPA’s Impact on Projects Act," requires the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to annually publish detailed reports starting July 2025 on how the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) affects federal projects. The reports will track NEPA-related lawsuits (including outcomes and costs), the length and cost of environmental reviews (like impact statements), and timelines for completing key review steps over 5- to 10-year periods. Data must be broken down by project type (e.g., energy, transportation) and sector (e.g., renewable energy, pipelines) to show trends in compliance, delays, and expenses. This information will be made publicly available online and submitted to relevant congressional committees, providing transparency on NEPA’s practical implementation without changing the law itself.

Maddy summaryHR 6509, the SAFE Drugs Act of 2025, limits how often pharmacies and healthcare providers can create custom drug formulations that copy standard medications. It restricts compounding any drug essentially identical to a commercially available product to no more than 20 times per month for individual patients. The bill also requires pharmacies compounding such drugs for out-of-state patients more than 20 times monthly to report details to the FDA, while exempting hospital pharmacies. These changes aim to improve safety oversight of non-standard drug compounding by setting clear limits and reporting rules.

Maddy summaryHRES 925 is a non-binding resolution condemning the Iranian government's ongoing persecution of the Baha'i religious minority. It directly affects Baha'is in Iran, who face systemic discrimination, imprisonment, denial of education and employment, and violence due to their faith. The resolution calls on Iran to immediately release Baha'i prisoners, end hate propaganda targeting them, and reverse policies banning their access to education and jobs. It also urges the U.S. President and Secretary of State to demand Iran's compliance and use existing sanctions authorities against officials responsible for human rights abuses against Baha'is.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a new interagency Task Force to dismantle foreign scam operations targeting Americans, particularly through "pig butchering" scams in Southeast Asia. The Task Force, chaired by the Secretary of State, will coordinate efforts across multiple agencies to shut down scam centers, impose sanctions on perpetrators, and support victims of trafficking. It requires a detailed strategy within 180 days and annual reports to Congress on progress, including sanctions imposed and funds recovered. The bill authorizes $30 million for these efforts in fiscal years 2026-2027, focusing on countries like Cambodia, Laos, and Burma where scam centers operate with forced labor.

Maddy summaryThe Claiming Age Clarity Act (HR 5284) requires the Social Security Administration to update its official terminology by January 1, 2027. It directs the replacement of specific terms: "early eligibility age" becomes "minimum monthly benefit age," "full retirement age" and "normal retirement age" become "standard monthly benefit age," and "delayed retirement credit" is eliminated, with "maximum monthly benefit age" used instead of age 70 references. This change applies to all Social Security Administration rules, regulations, guidance, and materials, both online and in print, affecting how the agency communicates retirement benefit rules to the public.

Give Kids a Chance Act of 2025 This bill expands the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) authority with respect to research on rare pediatric diseases, including by permitting the FDA to take enforcement action against drug sponsors that fail to satisfy pediatric study requirements and by reauthorizing programs that support pediatric research.  Specifically, the bill modifies requirements relating to molecularly targeted pediatric cancer investigations to permit research on new drugs in combination with active ingredients that have already been approved, provided certain conditions are met; permits the FDA to take enforcement action against drug sponsors that fail to comply with pediatric study requirements, if such sponsors demonstrated a lack of due diligence in satisfying the requirement; renews the FDA’s authority to award priority review vouchers to sponsors of new products intended to treat rare pediatric diseases through September 30, 2029; and reauthorizes through FY2027 certain funding for the National Institutes of Health to support priority pediatric research.  The bill also provides statutory authority for the FDA’s interpretation of the orphan drug exclusivity period. The bill specifies, consistent with FDA regulations, that the seven-year market exclusivity period for drugs for rare diseases or conditions (i.e., orphan drugs) prohibits the approval of the same drug for the same approved use or indication with respect to the disease or condition. (In Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Becerra , a court rejected the FDA’s interpretation and held that orphan drug exclusivity extends to all uses or indications for the disease or condition.)