Sen. Marsha Blackburn

Never Yielding Europe's Territory (NYET) Act of 2022 This bill addresses Russia's actions against Ukraine and other countries in the region. The bill authorizes and expedites the provision of security assistance, including by (1) prioritizing delivering excess defense articles to Ukraine, (2) authorizing the Department of State to waive certain costs for defense articles leased to Ukraine, and (3) authorizing additional Foreign Military Financing for programs in Europe. The bill also provides funding for (1) Foreign Military Financing assistance to Ukraine, (2) the Global Engagement Center to counter foreign-sponsored propaganda and disinformation, (3) the Countering Russian Influence Fund to support Ukraine and other countries in response to Russia's aggression, and (4) International Military Education and Training assistance for Ukraine. Furthermore, the bill imposes sanctions, including on (1) senior Russian military officials responsible for planning or executing military operations that violated Ukraine's sovereignty or territorial integrity, and (2) foreign individuals or entities that acted on behalf of Russia's government to destabilize Ukraine or disrupt Ukraine's critical infrastructure. The bill also addresses additional matters, including (1) authorizing Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty to explore opening new bureaus to reach audiences on Russia's periphery; and (2) providing for expedited approval of natural gas exports to qualifying nations, including NATO members, whereas currently expedited approval is only available for exports to countries that are in a free trade agreement relating to natural gas with the United States.

Providing Reports on Inflation Costs and Economic Impact Act or the PRICE Act This bill establishes a point of order that prohibits the Senate from considering legislation that provides discretionary appropriations unless a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report regarding the impact of the legislation on inflation has been submitted for publication in the Congressional Record. The CBO report must include an analysis of the impact the legislation would have on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers, the Employment Cost Index for private industry workers, and the purchasing power of consumers. The point of order may be waived or suspended by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Senate.

Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies Act of 2022 or the EARN IT Act of 2022 This bill revises the federal framework governing the prevention of online sexual exploitation of children. The bill establishes the National Commission on Online Child Sexual Exploitation Prevention. The commission must develop best practices for interactive computer services providers (e.g., Facebook and Twitter) to prevent, reduce, and respond to the online sexual exploitation of children. Additionally, the bill limits the liability protections of interactive computer service providers with respect to claims alleging violations of child sexual exploitation laws. The bill replaces various statutory references to child pornography and material that contains child pornography with child sexual abuse material . Finally, the bill makes changes to the reporting requirements for electronic communication service providers and remote computing service providers (providers) who report apparent instances of crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Among the changes, the bill requires providers to report facts and circumstances sufficient to identify and locate each minor and each involved individual. The bill also increases the amount of time that providers must preserve the contents of a report.

Restoring Confidence to the World Anti-Doping Agency Act of 2022 This bill modifies the authority of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) with respect to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Specifically, the ONDCP, in conjunction with USADA, must use all available tools to ensure that WADA maintains a proper conflict-of-interest policy and that independent athletes from the United States and other democratic countries, or representatives of such athletes, have voting positions on the Executive Committee and governing bodies of WADA; demonstrate leadership within the global community; have strict standards that work toward countering the state-sponsored doping system of the Russian Federation and other state-sponsored, systemic fraud through doping; and work collaboratively with democratic countries. The bill requires the United States to have at least one seat on the Executive Committee of WADA as a condition of its participation in WADA.

No Chinese Communist Subterfuge via Unregistered Regime Presence Rendered Invisible to Shareholders and Equivalent Parties Act or the No Chinese Communist SURPRISE Parties Act This bill requires issuers of securities to annually disclose whether the issuer has established or maintained an organization of the Chinese Communist Party, if an organization of the Chinese Communist Party has participated in the operations of the issuer, and whether the issuer's board of directors (1) owes a fiduciary duty to the issuer and shareholders, and (2) is subject to heightened scrutiny with respect to conflicted controller transactions.

Veterans Health Care Freedom Act This bill requires the Center for Innovation for Care and Payment within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement a three-year pilot program to improve the ability of veterans who are enrolled in the VA health care system to access hospital care, medical services, and extended care services through the covered care system by providing such veterans with the ability to choose health care providers. Under the bill, the covered care system includes VA medical facilities, health care providers participating in the Veterans Community Care Program (VCCP), and eligible entities or providers that have entered into a Veterans Care Agreement. A veteran participating in the program may elect to receive care at any provider in the covered care system. The pilot program removes certain requirements (e.g., location of the veteran) to access care at VA and non-VA facilities. After four years, the bill eliminates the requirements for accessing care under the VCCP and Veterans Care Agreements and requires the VA to provide such care under the same conditions of the pilot program. Additionally, after four years, veterans may receive care at a VA medical facility regardless of whether the facility is in the same Veterans Integrated Service Network as the veteran.

Cyber Ready Workforce Act This bill directs the Department of Labor to award grants to workforce intermediaries (entities that facilitate the establishment of registered apprenticeship programs and that may partner with a business or community-based organization, or specified other partners) to support the establishment, implementation, and expansion of such programs in cybersecurity.

Licensing Individual Commercial Exam-takers Now Safely and Efficiently Act of 2022 or the LICENSE Act of 2022 This bill provides statutory authority for waivers of training, testing, and other requirements for commercial driver's licenses that were issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Maddy summarySRES 501 designates the week of January 23-29, 2022, as "National School Choice Week" through a symbolic Senate resolution. The resolution encourages parents to learn about K-12 education options - including public schools, charters, private schools, and homeschooling - and urges the public to host events raising awareness of educational choice. It does not create new policies or affect any individuals or institutions, as it is a ceremonial designation focused solely on promoting public awareness. The resolution was adopted unanimously by the Senate on February 1, 2022.

This resolution honors and commends the women who served in the Navy Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service (WAVES) during World War II. Additionally, the resolution recognizes that the WAVES opened opportunities for women and contributed vitally to the victory of the United States and Allies in World War II.