Sen. Joni Ernst

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits U.S. federal funding for gain-of-function research on certain viruses. It directly affects universities and research institutions that conduct such research, banning new federal grants for them. The law defines gain-of-function research as work that could make influenza, MERS, or SARS viruses more dangerous or contagious in any organism. Federal agencies must stop awarding new grants to institutions performing this specific type of research.

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits federal funds from covering abortions in most circumstances, including health benefits plans, with exceptions for cases of rape, incest, or when a pregnancy endangers a woman's life. It specifically bars the use of Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits and cost-sharing reductions for health plans that cover abortion, requiring insurers to disclose abortion coverage details separately in marketing materials. The law applies to all federal health programs and ACA marketplace plans, ensuring taxpayer dollars aren't used for abortion services or coverage. It does not affect private insurance plans purchased with non-federal funds or separate abortion coverage options.

Maddy summaryS 84, the Defund EcoHealth Alliance Act, prohibits all federal funding for EcoHealth Alliance, Inc., including its subsidiaries, related organizations, and any subgrants or subcontractors it controls. The bill also requires the GAO to study and report on all federal funds (directly or indirectly) provided to EcoHealth Alliance over the past decade that may have reached entities in China, such as the Wuhan Institute of Virology or the Chinese Communist Party. This law directly affects EcoHealth Alliance by blocking future federal financial support and mandates a review of past funding flows to specific Chinese entities. The key mechanism is a permanent funding ban plus a mandated GAO audit of historical grants.

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits the U.S. Department of Defense from requiring defense contractors to report greenhouse gas emissions. It specifically bans the Secretary of Defense from mandating any "greenhouse gas inventory" or reports on Scope 1, Scope 2, or Scope 3 emissions from contractors holding federal defense contracts. The law directly affects defense contractors who would otherwise have been required to track and disclose their emissions data. It removes a specific reporting requirement for contractors under Defense Department contracts, without altering other environmental regulations.

Maddy summaryThis bill raises the reporting threshold for payment platforms like PayPal or Venmo. It requires these platforms to report transaction data only if a business receives over $20,000 in payments across more than 200 transactions in a year. This change directly affects payment processors and their business users by reducing the volume of transactions they must report to the IRS.

Maddy summaryS 15, the Ensuring Accurate and Complete Abortion Data Reporting Act of 2023, requires states to submit standardized abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) annually to continue receiving Medicaid funding for family planning services. States must report specific mandatory data points - including maternal age, gestational age, race, ethnicity, and abortion method - by December 31 of the previous year, using a CDC-maintained standardized system. The CDC will publish an annual report on this data, and states that fail to submit timely reports may still receive retroactive Medicaid payments, but knowingly providing false data can result in losing future Medicaid funding. This bill directly affects all states receiving Medicaid funds for family planning services, aiming to create uniform national abortion data collection.

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits the U.S. Secretary of Energy from selling petroleum products from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to entities controlled by the Chinese Communist Party or to any buyer unless they guarantee the oil won't be exported to China. It directly affects the Department of Energy (which manages the SPR) and any companies or entities seeking to purchase SPR oil with potential Chinese ties. The key mechanism requires the Secretary to block sales to China-linked entities or impose strict export restrictions on all sales. The bill aims to prevent SPR oil from reaching China, without creating new programs or altering existing SPR management rules.

Maddy summaryThe Protect Funding for Women's Health Care Act prohibits federal funding for Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its affiliates, clinics, subsidiaries, or successors. It redirects these funds to other eligible health care providers - including community health centers, hospitals, and clinics that serve underserved populations - to ensure continued access to services like contraception, cancer screenings, prenatal care, and STI testing. The bill explicitly states it does not alter existing abortion funding restrictions or reduce overall federal support for women’s health services. This policy change aims to maintain funding availability for essential women’s health care while shifting resources away from Planned Parenthood.

Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2021 This act provides for the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley. After it is awarded, the medal shall be given to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Preventing Organizational Conflicts of Interest in Federal Acquisition Act This act addresses conflicts of interest in federal acquisitions. Specifically, the act directs the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to revise the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to provide and update definitions related to specific types of organizational conflicts of interest; definitions, guidance, and illustrative examples related to relationships of contractors with public, private, domestic, and foreign entities that may cause contract support to be subject to potential organizational conflicts; and illustrative examples of situations related to the potential organizational conflicts identified. Further, the council must revise the FAR to provide executive agencies with solicitation provisions and contract clauses to avoid or mitigate organizational conflicts, for agency use as needed, that require contractors to disclose information relevant to potential organizational conflicts and limit future contracting with respect to potential conflicts with the work to be performed under awarded contracts; allow agencies to tailor such solicitation provisions and contract clauses as necessary to address risks associated with conflicts of interest and other considerations that may be unique to the agency; require agencies to establish or update agency conflict of interest procedures to implement the revisions to the FAR made under this act and periodically assess and update such procedures as needed to address agency-specific conflict issues; and update FAR procedures to permit contracting officers to take into consideration professional standards and procedures to prevent organizational conflicts of interest to which an offeror or contractor is subject.