American Security Drone Act of 2021 This bill bans the procurement or use by the federal government of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) that are manufactured or assembled by certain entities, including entities subject to influence or control by China, with exceptions. The ban includes associated elements that are required for the operator to operate safely and efficiently in the national airspace system. The Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Justice are exempt from the restriction under specified circumstances. The bill sets forth further exemptions regarding the Federal Aviation Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration. Federal funds may not be used to procure certain UAS from a foreign entity, with exceptions. All executive agencies must account for existing inventories of UAS manufactured or assembled by a foreign entity in their personal property accounting systems. Inventory data related to UAS manufactured or assembled by a foreign entity may be tracked at a classified level. The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council shall prescribe regulations or guidance to implement this bill's requirements pertaining to federal contracts. Government-issued purchase cards may not be used to procure any UAS from a foreign entity. The Office of Management and Budget shall (1) establish a government-wide policy for the procurement of UAS, taking into account information security; and (2) contract with a federally funded research and development center to study certain UAS-related issues.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn
Sponsored bills
Focus on the Mission Act of 2022 This bill prohibits the Department of Defense from requiring the recipient of a federal contract to provide a greenhouse gas inventory or to provide any other report on greenhouse gas emissions.
Kids Online Safety Act This bill sets out requirements for covered platforms (i.e., social networks, video streaming services, or other applications that connect to the internet and are likely to be used by minors) to protect minors from online harm, including requirements relating to (1) safeguards to restrict access to the personal data of minors, (2) tools to help parents supervise a minor's use of a platform, and (3) reporting of harm to minors from using the platform.
Continuity for Operators with Necessary Training Required for ATC Contract Towers Act of 2021 or the CONTRACT Act of 2021 This bill exempts certain air traffic controllers from a required reduction in their retirement annuity payment on account of earnings from certain work performed while entitled to such annuity. Under current law, retired Federal Aviation Administration air traffic controllers receive an annuity payment during the period between the mandatory retirement age of 56 and the Social Security minimum age of 62. Such annuity payment is required to be reduced by a certain percentage of any excess earnings during this period. The bill exempts from such reduction in annuity payments an air traffic controller who participates in the Air Traffic Control Contract Program (a public-private partnership for air traffic control services) following mandatory retirement.
This joint resolution nullifies a Department of Education rule published on July 6, 2022, concerning final priorities, requirements, definitions, and selection criteria for the Charter Schools Program.
This resolution states that the Senate holds the Russian government responsible for the illegal kidnapping of children from Ukraine and condemns these actions. The resolution also (1) declares that illegal adoptions are contrary to the Genocide Convention (the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide); (2) claims that Russia is attempting to wipe out a generation of Ukrainian children; and (3) asserts that Russia's invasion of Ukraine has increased the risks of children being exposed to human trafficking, exploitation, child labor, gender-based violence, hunger, injury, trauma, deprivation of education and shelter, and death.
Reese's Law This bill requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to establish product safety standards with respect to batteries that pose an ingestion hazard (e.g., button cell or coin batteries).
National R & D Strategy for Distributed Ledger Technology Act of 2022 This bill provides for a national strategy and research and development regarding technologies related to distributed ledgers (e.g., blockchain or Bitcoin). A distributed ledger is a ledger that is shared across and synchronized between a set of distributed nodes (i.e., devices or processes) in a network that store a complete or partial replica of the ledger and meet other requirements. The Office of Science and Technology Policy must develop a national strategy for the research and development of distributed ledger technologies and their applications, including applications of public and permissionless distributed ledgers. The office must coordinate with the National Science and Technology Council and other relevant federal agencies, as appropriate, on the strategy. The national strategy shall include plans to support public and private sector investment and partnerships in research and technology development for societally beneficial applications of distributed ledger technologies, and an identification of additional resources, administrative action, or legislative action recommended to assist with the implementation of such strategy. The National Science Foundation shall make competitive awards to institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations (or their consortia) to support research, including interdisciplinary research, on distributed ledger technologies and their applications. The National Institute of Standards and Technology may carry out an applied research project to study and demonstrate the potential benefits and unique capabilities of distributed ledger technologies.
Strengthening Support for American Manufacturing Act This bill requires the Department of Commerce to contract the National Academy of Public Administration to study and report on Commerce's manufacturing programs. The study must (1) include the statutory authority for the programs, and (2) assess proposals to consolidate the programs.
Free Veterans from Fees Act This bill waives the application fee for any application for any special use permit the sole purpose of which is to hold a veterans' special event at a war memorial on land administered by the National Park Service in the District of Columbia and its environs.