Maddy summaryThis bill allows Members of Congress to use Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities for meetings with veterans who are their constituents. It requires the VA Secretary to create regulations within 90 days, ensuring spaces are visible, accessible during business hours, and rented at rates similar to standard office space in the area. The regulations prohibit campaigning, political discussions, photographing patients without consent, and meetings during the 60 days before federal elections. It directly affects veterans seeking congressional assistance and Members of Congress who can now hold constituent meetings at VA locations. The bill does not change VA benefits or services but streamlines access to representatives for veterans.
Sponsored bills
Maddy summaryThis bill, HR 1097 (Everett Alvarez, Jr. Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2023), authorizes the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Everett Alvarez, Jr., in recognition of his service as a U.S. Navy pilot and Vietnam War prisoner of war. It directly honors Alvarez, who was the first U.S. pilot shot down in the Vietnam War, spent over 8.5 years in captivity, and later served in the Peace Corps and Veterans Administration. The bill’s key mechanism is directing the U.S. Mint to strike a gold medal bearing his name and image, with bronze duplicates available for sale to cover costs. It does not create new policies or affect any group beyond the honoree.
Maddy summaryHR 10556, the Voter Eligibility Verification Act of 2024, requires state and local government agencies to respond to requests about a person's immigration status within 30 days if those requests relate to voter eligibility. It amends an existing law (8 U.S.C. 1373(c)) by adding a specific 30-day deadline for agencies to provide such information upon request. The bill directly affects agencies handling voter registration and immigration status data, streamlining how they respond to verification inquiries. It does not change voter eligibility rules but modifies the response timeline for specific immigration-related queries tied to voting.
Maddy summaryHR 7513, the Protecting America’s Seniors’ Access to Care Act, prohibits the Department of Health and Human Services from implementing or enforcing a proposed rule that would have set minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes and other long-term care facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid funding. The bill specifically blocks the September 2023 proposed rule (88 Fed. Reg. 61352-61429) and any substantially similar rule. This directly affects long-term care facilities that rely on federal healthcare program payments. The key mechanism is a clear statutory prohibition preventing the rule from taking effect, without altering existing staffing standards or requirements.
Maddy summaryThis bill allows Medicaid programs to enter into value-based purchasing (VBP) arrangements with drug manufacturers for innovative treatments like gene therapies. It codifies these arrangements by requiring states to report pricing structures based on patient outcomes and best prices for drugs sold under these agreements. The bill enables payments to be tied to treatment effectiveness, potentially reducing long-term healthcare costs by decreasing hospitalizations and other medical expenses. It also creates a requirement for a GAO study to evaluate how these arrangements impact patient access, outcomes, and healthcare system costs. The bill will sunset after 5 years, though existing VBP arrangements will continue beyond that date.
Maddy summaryHR 5401, the 9/11 Memorial and Museum Act, provides a one-time federal grant of $5 million to $10 million to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum (operated by the World Trade Center Foundation). The grant funds the museum's operations, security, and maintenance, with specific requirements including free admission for veterans, first responders, and victims' families, dedicated weekly free public hours, and annual financial audits. The museum must also report annually to Congress on how the funds were used. This bill directly affects the museum's financial operations and access policies, not broader legislative changes.
Maddy summaryThe FOCA Act of 2023 requires federal agencies to stop mandating or banning contractor agreements with labor organizations (like union contracts) in construction project bids and contracts. It directly affects federal contractors, subcontractors, and agencies managing construction projects funded by the government. The bill prohibits favoring or penalizing contractors based on their labor affiliation status, aiming to promote fair competition and reduce costs. It also mandates updates to federal contracting rules within 60 days of enactment to implement these changes.
Maddy summaryThe Highway Formula Fairness Act (HR 10462) changes how federal highway funds are distributed to states starting in fiscal year 2024. It requires the federal government to calculate each state's share based on that state's proportion of highway user tax payments to the Highway Trust Fund (excluding mass transit funds) relative to all states. The bill ensures states receive at least 95% of the amount they would get under this new formula, preventing any state from receiving less than this threshold. This directly affects all states receiving highway funds under specified programs (sections 119, 133, 148, 149, 167, 175, 176(c), and 134). The change aims to make funding more reflective of each state's contribution to the Highway Trust Fund.
Maddy summaryThis bill, the Enhancing Hospice Oversight and Transparency Act, directly affects Medicare-certified hospice programs by changing how they are monitored and penalized for quality reporting. It increases payment penalties for failing to submit required quality data: 10% for fiscal years 2027 and later (up from 2% or 4% previously). The bill also requires the government to publicly identify hospices selected for enhanced review after providing them a confidential feedback report. These changes take effect no later than January 1, 2027.
Maddy summaryHR 9667 requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to hire 500 new officers and purchase 50 non-intrusive imaging systems to inspect vehicles and people traveling from the U.S. to Mexico at the southern border. It mandates that at least 10% of such "southbound" traffic be inspected by March 2027, with additional personnel for investigating currency, firearms, and drug smuggling. The bill also requires quarterly reports on seized currency and firearms, and a 2028 report on expanding inspection rates to 15-20%. The provisions expire after five years and apply specifically to inspections of traffic moving from the U.S. to Mexico.