Khalid Jabara and Heather Heyer National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality Act of 2021 or the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act This bill creates grants for state and local governments to combat hate crimes. It also authorizes additional penalties for hate crime offenses. Specifically, it establishes grants for states to create state-run hate crimes reporting hotlines. It also authorizes grants for states and local governments to implement the National Incident-Based Reporting System and to conduct law enforcement activities or crime reduction programs to prevent, address, or respond to hate crimes. Finally, in the case of an individual convicted of a hate crime offense and placed on supervised release, the bill allows a court to order that the individual participate in educational classes or community service as a condition of supervised release.
Sponsored bills
Made in America Act of 2021 This bill requires that materials used in carrying out federal infrastructure aid programs are produced in the United States, with exceptions. The term produced in the United States means, in the case of iron or steel products, that all manufacturing processes for the iron or steel product, from the initial melting stage through the application of coatings, occurred in the United States; manufactured products, that the product was manufactured in the United States and that the cost of the components of the manufactured product that are mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States is greater than 50% of the total cost of all components of the manufactured product; and construction materials, that all manufacturing processes for the construction material occurred in the United States. The Department of Commerce must (1) issue uniform standards that define the term all manufacturing processes for purposes of this bill, and (2) take into consideration and seek to maximize the jobs benefited or created in the production of the construction material. The bill requires that all steel, iron, manufactured products, nonferrous metals, plastic, concrete and aggregates, glass (including optical glass), lumber, and drywall used in these programs be produced in the United States. Infrastructure addressed by this bill includes federal-aid highways, railroads, public transportation infrastructure, civil aviation infrastructure, drinking water infrastructure, and stormwater infrastructure.
Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Labor to promulgate an occupational safety or health standard on prevention of exposure to excessive heat. Excessive heat includes outdoor or indoor exposure to heat at levels that exceed the capacities of the body to maintain normal body functions and may cause heat-related injury, illness, or fatality. In addition, the bill establishes requirements concerning (1) training and education to prevent and respond to heat illness, and (2) whistle-blower protections.
This resolution condemns the acts of gun violence that led to the tragic loss of eight lives in Georgia on March 16, 2021.
Stop Student Debt Relief Scams Technical Corrections Act This bill revises the requirements for third-party access to the central database for student aid (i.e., the National Student Loan Data System). First, the bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to issue, by July 1, 2021, its guidance on the use of access devices. Additionally, the bill provides ED with discretion to approve applications from authorized persons or entities for third-party data access to the system. The bill also expands the categories of persons or entities that are authorized to access the system to include certain for-profit organizations.
Flexible Financing for Rural America Act of 202 1 This bill allows rural utility service providers to submit to the Department of Agriculture (USDA) a request to adjust the interest rate or modify the terms of certain loans. The request shall include a report summarizing how the adjustment or modification will assist the borrower in providing critical utility services to a rural community. Specifically, on receipt of a request, USDA or the Department of the Treasury (in the case of a loan owned by the Federal Financing Bank) must adjust the interest rate on the loan to match certain interest rates for obligations of comparable maturity to the term remaining on the loan (or a higher rate requested by the borrower), and make modifications to the loan terms as necessary to address changes in the financial position of the borrower due to the COVID-19 public health emergency and to promote the financial sustainability of the borrower. In carrying out the adjustments or modifications, USDA or Treasury shall not impose or collect any fee from, or impose any penalty on, a borrower. The bill also provides funding to implement the adjustments and modifications and for the liquidation of residual intragovernmental amounts owed by the Federal Financing Bank in connection with certain loans.
Korematsu-Takai Civil Liberties Protection Act of 2021 This bill modifies the detention authority of the United States. Specifically, it prohibits detention or imprisonment based solely on an actual or perceived protected characteristic of an individual. A protected characteristic includes each of the following: race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, and any additional characteristic that the Department of Justice determines to be a protected characteristic.
Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 This bill reduces statutory mandatory minimum penalties for certain drug offenses, requires reporting on the impact of cost savings from the reductions, and establishes a public database of federal criminal offenses. First, the bill reduces statutory mandatory minimum penalties for two types of offenders: (1) individuals who manufacture, distribute, or possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance; and (2) couriers who import or export a controlled substance. Second, the bill requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to report on how the reduced expenditures on federal corrections and cost savings from the reductions in mandatory minimum sentences help to reduce overcrowding in federal prisons, increase investment in law enforcement and crime prevention, and reduce recidivism. Third, the bill requires DOJ and federal agencies to report on and create public databases of all criminal offenses—criminal statutory offenses and criminal regulatory offenses.
Junk Plan Accountability and Disclosure Act of 2021 This bill establishes requirements for certain noncomprehensive health insurance coverage and provides for additional outreach activities to increase enrollment in qualified health plans. Specifically, the bill prohibits online advertisements for health insurance coverage that reasonably mislead an individual (1) to believe that the advertisement is on behalf of a government entity such as a state or federal health insurance exchange, or (2) about the cost or benefits of noncomprehensive coverage (e.g., short-term, limited-duration insurance) compared to a qualified health plan under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The bill provides authority for the Federal Trade Commission to enforce these prohibitions. The bill also requires certain types of coverage (e.g., coverage for nontraditional benefits or student health insurance coverage) to provide consumers with a clear statement indicating the benefits the coverage provides and that the coverage is not a comprehensive health plan. These plans also must meet specified reporting requirements. In states with a federally administered exchange, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must conduct outreach and educational activities to individuals about the availability of qualified health plans through the exchange. The bill also provides grants for states to conduct open enrollment outreach with respect to qualified health plans and to explore solutions to promote greater enrollment. The bill provides funding for these outreach activities.
Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance Act of 2021 or the EACH Act of 2021 This bill requires federal health care programs to provide coverage for abortion services and requires federal facilities to provide access to those services. The bill also permits qualified health plans to use funds attributable to premium tax credits and reduced cost sharing assistance to pay for abortion services.