Supply Chain Disruptions Relief Act This bill modifies the treatment of liquidations of new motor vehicle inventory as qualified LIFO (last in first out accounting method) inventory. It allows new motor vehicle dealers to elect to wait until the end of 2025 to replace their inventory for purposes of determining income attributable to the sale of such inventory during 2020 and 2021.
Kansas Indian Country Law Enforcement Improvement Act of 2022 This bill revises Kansas's criminal jurisdiction over offenses committed on the reservation of a covered Indian tribe. Covered Indian tribe means the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska, the Kickapoo Tribe of Indians of the Kickapoo Reservation in Kansas, the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, and the Sac & Fox Nation of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska. Specifically, the bill requires affirmative consent from the governing body of a covered tribe for Kansas to have criminal jurisdiction over offenses committed on the tribe's reservation. The bill authorizes federal agencies and state and local governments in Kansas to enter into cooperative agreements or compacts with the governing bodies of covered Indian tribes for specified purposes, such as reducing crime in Indian country and nearby communities. Each cooperative agreement or compact entered into under the bill must (1) authorize law enforcement officers to be deputized, (2) include requirements for reporting crimes, and (3) describe the geographic limits within the reservation and categories of criminal offenses over which Kansas may exercise its jurisdiction. The Department of Justice must, upon request from the governing body of a covered Indian tribe, provide technical assistance in developing cooperative agreements or compacts.
This joint resolution nullifies the final rule issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service titled Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Lesser Prairie-Chicken; Threatened Status With Section 4(d) Rule for the Northern Distinct Population Segment and Endangered Status for the Southern Distinct Population Segmen t and published on November 25, 2022. The rule adds the Northern Distinct Population Segment of lesser prairie-chicken to the list of threatened species and the Southern District Population Segment of lesser prairie-chicken to the list of endangered species.
This joint resolution nullifies the final rule issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service titled Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Lesser Prairie-Chicken; Threatened Status With Section 4(d) Rule for the Northern Distinct Population Segment and Endangered Status for the Southern Distinct Population Segmen t and published on November 25, 2022. The rule adds the Northern Distinct Population Segment of lesser prairie-chicken to the list of threatened species and the Southern District Population Segment of lesser prairie-chicken to the list of endangered species.
Consumer Transaction Account Protection Act of 2022 This bill specifies that consumer transaction account deposits of an insured depository institution are not funds obtained through a deposit broker. In general, current law prohibits an insured depository institution that is not well capitalized from accepting for deposit funds obtained through a deposit broker.
Asset Growth Restriction Act of 2022 This bill repeals restrictions related to brokered deposits and provides for asset growth restrictions applicable to insured depository institutions. Brokered deposits are deposits made to an insured institution, such as a bank, through a third-party broker for investment purposes. Currently, only well-capitalized banks are allowed to solicit and accept brokered deposits, while institutions that are adequately capitalized may accept if granted a waiver. Undercapitalized banks are prohibited from accepting these deposits. The bill repeals these brokered deposit restrictions and directs the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to establish limits on growth of average total assets for less than well-capitalized institutions to maintain their safety and soundness.
Brokered Deposit Affiliate-Subsidiary Modernization Act of 2022 This bill excludes affiliates and subsidiaries of an insured depository institution from certain limitations applicable to brokered deposits. (Brokered deposits are a type of deposit accepted by an institution from a third-party deposit broker for investment purposes. Institutions that accept brokered deposits are subject to additional regulatory requirements, including those related to liquidity.) The bill also expands the definition of an employee of an insured depository institution, thereby exempting these individuals from treatment as a deposit broker. Specifically, the bill includes as an employee (1) an individual who receives compensation in any form from an insured depository institution or from an affiliate or subsidiary, and (2) a registered representative of a broker or dealer that is an affiliate or subsidiary of an insured depository institution.
The Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 2021 makes several key changes to improve veterans' benefits processing. It creates an internship program for law students at the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Section 101) and establishes a pilot honors program to recruit legal professionals (Section 102). The bill requires the VA to publish disability benefit forms (Section 201) and mandates that contractors communicate with veterans' power of attorney representatives (Section 203). It also allows veterans to consent to electronic notifications of decisions (Section 302) and facilitates contractor access to tax information for claims processing (Section 303). These provisions directly affect veterans seeking benefits, VA staff, and contractors working with the VA.
Expanding the Voluntary Opportunities for Translations in Elections Act or the Expanding the VOTE Act This bill expands access to voting materials for individuals with limited proficiency in the English language, including by establishing incentive grants for states and political subdivisions to provide translated voting materials. Additionally, the bill directs the Government Accountability Office to study the impact of (1) reducing the threshold requirement under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and (2) expanding the definition of language minorities to include native speakers of additional languages.
Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act of 2021 This act prohibits the exportation of Native American cultural items and archaeological resources that were illegally obtained; provides for the return of such items, including voluntary returns; and establishes and increases related criminal penalties. Specifically, the act makes it a federal crime to export, attempt to export, or otherwise transport from the United States Native American cultural items and archaeological resources without obtaining an export certification. U.S. Customs and Border Protection must detain any item requiring an export certification that does not have one. The act requires the Department of the Interior and the Department of State to each designate a liaison to facilitate and hold trainings and workshops on the voluntary return of human remains and cultural items. Additionally, Interior must refer individuals and organizations to Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations to facilitate the voluntary return of human remains and cultural items; convene an interagency working group; and convene a Native working group consisting of representatives of Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations to provide advice on issues concerning the return of, and illegal trade in, human remains and cultural items. The act also increases the maximum criminal penalties for violating the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. In particular, the act increases from 5 years to 10 years the maximum prison term for an individual convicted of a second or subsequent violation of selling, purchasing, using for profit, or transporting for sale or profit human remains or cultural items that were illegally obtained.
This act directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the posthumous award of a Congressional Gold Medal to commemorate Glen Doherty, Tyrone Woods, J. Christopher Stevens, and Sean Smith, four Americans killed in the September 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. (Stevens was the U.S. Ambassador to Libya at the time, Smith was an officer in the Foreign Service, and Doherty and Woods were both government contractors and former Navy SEALs.) After the medal has been awarded, it shall be given to the Central Intelligence Agency Museum.
National Task Force on the COVID-19 Pandemic Act This bill establishes a legislative branch task force to investigate the facts and circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, including preparedness for and responses to the pandemic.
