Rep. Joseph D. Morelle

Maddy summaryHR 1876, the "Keeping Our Field Offices Open Act," prevents the Social Security Administration (SSA) from closing, consolidating, or restricting access to its field offices, hearing offices, or resident stations for 180 days after enactment, with exceptions for emergencies. The bill requires the SSA Commissioner to submit a detailed report to Congress by January 2029, analyzing closure criteria, transportation burdens for elderly/disabled users, cost-benefit impacts, and plans to replace lost services. For future closures, it mandates 120 days of public notice, two public hearings, and a final report to Congress, while ensuring total office numbers don’t fall below 2025 levels. This directly affects SSA field offices, their users (including elderly and disabled individuals), and employees. The bill’s key mechanism is a procedural safeguard to ensure transparency and minimize disruption before any office changes take effect.

Maddy summaryThis bill strengthens the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by clarifying how to prove voting discrimination and expanding requirements for preclearance of voting changes. It establishes new standards for determining when voting practices dilute minority voting strength or deny/abridge voting rights, requiring plaintiffs to show specific conditions for vote dilution claims and including factors like historical discrimination and racial polarization in court analyses. The bill modifies the criteria for determining which states and political subdivisions must seek preclearance for voting changes, and adds new transparency requirements for jurisdictions to publicly disclose changes to voting qualifications, polling locations, and election districts. It directly affects states and local governments that implement voting policies, particularly those with a history of voting rights violations or that make changes to voting qualifications, procedures, or district boundaries. The bill aims to prevent discriminatory voting practices by providing clearer standards for courts and requiring greater transparency in voting rule changes.

Maddy summaryThe Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025 strengthens workers' organizing rights by making it an unfair labor practice for employers to threaten permanent replacement of striking workers, discriminate against workers who support unions, or require employees to attend employer campaigns unrelated to their job duties. It expands the definition of "employee" to make it harder for companies to classify workers as independent contractors and requires employers to post notices about workers' rights in conspicuous locations. The bill establishes a new electronic voting system for union elections, creates a 90-day bargaining period before mediation can be requested, and increases penalties for violations of labor laws. These changes are intended to make it easier for workers to form unions and negotiate better wages and working conditions.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a federal pilot program to increase wages for child care workers through competitive grants to states and tribes. It requires grant recipients to use funds directly to supplement wages for eligible workers in licensed child care centers or home-based settings, paid quarterly, with up to 10% of funds allowed for administrative costs. The program must track impacts on worker retention, well-being, care quality, and affordability, and report results to Congress within two years. It targets low-wage workers in underserved areas, including those serving infants, toddlers, children with disabilities, or during nontraditional hours.

Maddy summaryHR 803, the Sergeant Gary Beikirch Medal of Honor Act, amends a provision in the U.S. Code (38 U.S.C. §1562) to allow Medal of Honor recipients to receive both the Medal of Honor and the special pension benefit concurrently. Currently, a provision in the law prevents recipients from receiving this pension alongside the Medal of Honor. The bill removes the specific language (subparagraph (C)) that created this conflict. This change directly affects living Medal of Honor recipients who would now be eligible for the full pension benefit without losing it due to the award. The bill is procedural, focusing solely on updating the pension eligibility rules.

Maddy summaryThis resolution (HRES 182) symbolically designates March 3, 2025, as "National Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Day" to raise public awareness. It directly affects communities impacted by triple-negative breast cancer, which disproportionately affects young women, Black and Hispanic women, and those with BRCA mutations. The bill highlights that this aggressive cancer type accounts for 10-15% of breast cancer diagnoses and 25% of breast cancer deaths in the U.S. The resolution expresses congressional support for increased awareness and action to address this disease, without creating new laws or funding.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand research on triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a highly aggressive form disproportionately affecting African-American and Hispanic women. It requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to create public education materials about TNBC incidence, treatment options, and racial disparities, and directs health agencies to provide updated TNBC information to healthcare providers. The legislation specifically targets gaps in understanding TNBC prevalence, treatment costs, and prevention methods among minority women. It authorizes funding for these research and education efforts from fiscal years 2026 through 2031.

Maddy summaryHR 1787 authorizes the U.S. Mint to produce commemorative coins honoring baseball legend Roberto Clemente, including $5 gold, $1 silver, and half-dollar coins, with specific specifications for weight, size, and metal content. The bill requires the coins to feature Clemente's image and commemorative inscriptions, and mandates a surcharge ($35 for gold, $10 for silver, $5 for half-dollar) paid to the Roberto Clemente Foundation for its educational, youth sports, and disaster relief programs. All coins must be minted in 2027, sold at face value plus surcharge and production costs, and will be legal tender. The bill focuses solely on the coin program, not broader policy changes.

Safe Schools Improvement Act This bill requires states to direct their local educational agencies (LEAs) to establish policies that prevent and prohibit bullying and harassment of elementary and secondary school students. In particular, these policies must prohibit bullying and harassment based on race, color, national origin, disability, religion, or sex. Sex includes sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics (including intersex traits). Further, LEAs must provide (1) students, parents, and educational professionals with annual notice of the conduct prohibited in their disciplinary policies; (2) students and parents with grievance procedures that target such conduct; and (3) the public with annual data on the incidence and frequency of that conduct at the school and LEA level. The Department of Education must conduct and report on an independent biennial evaluation of programs and policies to combat bullying and harassment in elementary and secondary schools. The National Center for Education Statistics must collect state data to determine the incidence and frequency of the conduct prohibited by LEA disciplinary policies.

Maddy summaryThis bill (HJRES 63) would rename the Robert E. Lee Memorial, a National Park Service site in Arlington, Virginia, to "Arlington House National Historic Site." It directly affects the National Park Service, which manages the site, and all federal government documents, maps, and records referencing the location. The key provision updates all official references to the site to the new name and repeals two prior resolutions that established the memorial. As a procedural renaming bill, it does not create new policies or funding but changes the site's official designation.