Sen. Steve Daines

Continental Divide Trail Completion Act This bill directs the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to complete the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail as a contiguous route by November 10, 2028. The Forest Service and Interior must also establish a joint Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management trail completion team to work in coordination with the administrator of the trail to facilitate its completion and optimization. In addition, the Forest Service must submit to specified congressional committees a comprehensive development plan for the trail.

This resolution recognizes the efforts and sacrifices of the wildland firefighters who have risked their lives to fight intense wildfires in 2022. The resolution also (1) expresses support for communities throughout the West as they focus on recovery and rebuilding areas and communities affected by wildfires, and (2) extends gratitude to the families and loved ones of wildland firefighters for supporting the wildland firefighter community.

Maddy summaryThis bill grants a federal charter to the National American Indian Veterans, Incorporated, establishing it as a legally recognized nonprofit organization. It directly affects American Indian veterans by creating a formal entity to unite them, advocate for their needs with government agencies, and support tribal veterans services through outreach and training. Key provisions include requiring the organization to maintain tax-exempt status, prohibiting stock or dividends, mandating annual congressional reports on its activities, and granting exclusive rights to its name and emblems. The charter imposes strict governance rules to ensure the organization remains focused on veteran advocacy without distributing assets to members.

This concurrent resolution affirms the commitments in the Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women's Health and Strengthening the Family and applauds the signatory countries for their dedication to advancing women's health, protecting life at every stage while affirming that there is no international right to abortion, and upholding the importance of the family as foundational to society. The resolution calls on President Biden to once again add the United States as a signatory to the Geneva Consensus Declaration.

This resolution recognizes November 2022 as National Native American Heritage Month and the Friday after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day.

Protect Camp Lejeune Victims Ensnared by Trial-lawyer's Scams Act or the Protect Camp Lejeune VETS Act This bill limits attorney's fees for claims involving individuals who were exposed to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, between August 1, 1953, and December 31, 1987.

This bill prohibits the Department of the Interior from requiring a drilling permit under the Mineral Leasing Act for an action occurring within an oil and gas drilling or spacing unit, if (1) less than 50% of the minerals within the unit are federally owned, and (2) the federal government neither owns nor leases the surface estate within the unit's boundaries.

Reinvesting In Shoreline Economies and Ecosystems Act of 2022 or the RISEE Act of 2022 This bill expands the amount of revenue generated from leases for energy development on federal land or submerged lands in the Outer Continental Shelf that is shared with certain states and coastal communities. For example, the bill dedicates a percentage of the revenue generated from offshore wind leases for coastal states. Currently, this revenue is deposited in the U.S. Treasury. In addition, the bill increases the amount of revenue generated from offshore oil and gas leases that is shared with states under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act. States must use the funding from the revenue for specified purposes, such as coastal restoration, conservation, or infrastructure.

Maddy summarySenate Joint Resolution 63 (SJRES 63) proposes to terminate the national emergency declared by President Trump on March 13, 2020, under Proclamation 9994. If enacted, it would end the legal status of this emergency, removing the basis for federal agencies to use emergency powers during the pandemic. This resolution does not change existing laws but formally ends the emergency declaration under the National Emergencies Act. It directly affects federal agencies and programs operating under the emergency authority, such as those waiving regulations or accessing emergency funds.

IRS Funding Accountability Act This bill delays for a 60-day period funding for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) enforcement activities enacted by the Inflation Reduction Act (except for eliminating return processing backlogs and reducing call wait times) until an annual spending plan for such activities is submitted to the congressional tax and appropriation committees. Congress may enact a joint resolution of disapproval of the spending plan before the end of the 60-day period requiring the IRS to submit a new spending plan. The IRS and the Department of the Treasury must make quarterly reports to the committees on expenditures for enforcement activities. The bill requires reductions in appropriations to the IRS for any failure to submit required reports.