Young Americans Financial Literacy Act This bill requires the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to award competitive grants to eligible institutions for the establishment of financial literacy education programs for young people and families. An eligible institution is a partnership among two or more of the following an institution of higher education; a state or local government agency specializing in financial education; a nonprofit agency, organization, or association; a financial institution; or another small organization. Authorized grant funded activities shall include developing and implementing comprehensive, research based, financial-literacy education programs for young people; designing instructional materials; developing and supporting the delivery of professional development programs in financial literacy education; improving access to, and dissemination of, financial literacy information for young people and families; developing educational programs to reduce student loan default rates; conducting ongoing research and evaluation of financial literacy education programs; and measuring the effectiveness of authorized activities. The grant program shall terminate after FY2025.
Keeping All Students Safe Act This bill prohibits the use of seclusion and limits the use of physical restraint in schools and Head Start programs that receive federal funding. Specifically, the bill prohibits the use of seclusion, which is the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area from which the student is physically prevented from leaving. The term does not include a time out, which may involve separating the student from others in a non-locked setting. The bill prohibits the use of mechanical or chemical restraints or physical restraints that restrict breathing or are life threatening. The bill outlines the requirements for the use of physical restraint, including that the student's behavior must pose an imminent danger of serious physical injury to the student or other individual. Each state must ensure that a sufficient number of program personnel are trained and certified by a state-approved crisis intervention training program. Additionally, each program must establish procedures to follow after an incident involving physical restraint. Further, the bill establishes enforcement provisions, including a private right of action for a student who has been subjected to unlawful seclusion or restraint. The Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services must withhold payments from a program for unlawful seclusion or restraint. Finally, the bill requires each state educational agency (SEA) to establish, implement, and enforce policies and procedures required by the bill. It also creates a grant program to assist SEAs with these activities.
Gold Star Families Benefits Protection Act This bill authorizes specified individuals to use commissary stores and MWR retail facilities (e.g., exchange stores) on the same basis as an active duty service member. Specifically, the bill authorizes an adult individual who (1) is the surviving child of a service member, and (2) who has received a Gold Star Lapel Button or Next of Kin Deceased Personnel Lapel Button.
Biodiesel Tax Credit Extension Act of 2021 This bill extends the income and excise tax credits for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel through 2025.
Restaurant Recovery Fairness Act of 2021 This bill directs the Small Business Administration (SBA) to require applicants for restaurant revitalization grants to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse, and it requires the SBA to submit an oversight and audit plan detailing its policies and procedures with respect to such grants.
Reporting Instances of Non-authorized Grift Act of 2021 or the RING Act of 2021 This bill requires creditors to establish a hotline for assisting consumers who are 50 years of age or older to resolve billing errors and mitigate fraud.
Documenting Adversarial Trade Aggression Act or the DATA Act This bill requires the Department of Commerce to establish a China Economic Data Coordination Center within the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The center must collect, synthesize, and report on specified Chinese economic data regarding developments in China's financial markets and U.S. exposure to risks and vulnerabilities in China's financial system.
Healthcare for Our Troops Act This bill addresses TRICARE Reserve Select coverage and eligibility for Selected Reserve members of the Ready Reserve and their families. Among other elements, the bill provides eligibility for TRICARE Reserve Select to Selected Reserve members of the Ready Reserve who are eligible for or enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program.
Gold Star Children Act This bill broadens the categories of individuals eligible for veterans' preference in the civil service. Specifically, it makes children of certain permanently disabled or deceased veterans eligible for veterans' preference treatment in the federal civil service.
Air America Act of 2021 This bill establishes the service of Air America employees as qualifying service for purposes of the Civil Service Retirement System. (Air America was a government-owned airline that provided air transport for certain covert operations in Southeast Asia, including Laos and Vietnam, between 1950 and 1976.) The bill applies to U.S. citizens who were employees of Air America or another affiliated company, as specified, between January 1, 1950 and December 31, 1976. Benefit applications must be filed within two years of the date of enactment of this bill.
Pursuing Equity in Mental Health Act This bill establishes and expands programs to address racial and ethnic disparities in mental health. Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must award grants to establish interprofessional behavioral health care teams in areas with a high proportion of racial and ethnic minority groups. In addition, HHS may award grants to incorporate best practices and competencies to address mental health disparities in curricula for training social workers, psychologists, and other behavioral health professionals. HHS must also promote behavioral and mental health and reduce stigma associated with mental health conditions and substance use disorder through outreach to racial and ethnic minority groups. HHS must consult with appropriate advocacy groups and behavioral health organizations to develop a strategy for this outreach. The bill also (1) reauthorizes the minority fellowship program to support the education of mental health professionals who provide services to racial and ethnic minorities, and (2) requires studies on mental health disparities and the effects of social media use on adolescents.
This bill revises requirements for exemptions given to small refineries of crude oil under the renewable fuel program, which requires transportation fuel to contain a minimum volume of renewable fuel.
