Equity in STD Testing Act This bill provides for coverage, without cost-sharing, of testing for certain sexually transmitted diseases under Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), TRICARE, Department of Veterans Affairs health benefits, and the Indian Health Service.
Food Deserts Act This bill establishes a Department of Agriculture program to provide grants to states for revolving funds to support the establishment and operation of grocery stores in underserved communities. An underserved community is a community that has (1) limited access to affordable, healthy foods, including fresh fruits and vegetables, in grocery retail stores or farmer-to-consumer direct markets; and (2) a high rate of hunger or food insecurity or a high poverty rate. States must use the funds to make loans to support grocery stores in underserved communities, including for opening a store (excluding new construction), or supporting or purchasing an existing store. States may only make loans for grocery stores that meet requirements related to emphasizing unprocessed, healthful foods; providing staple foods and a variety of raw fruits and vegetables; having a plan to keep the foods in stock; charging affordable prices at or below market averages; meeting specified matching requirements using nonfederal funds; and being qualified to operate a store or having partnerships with organizations that provide technical assistance. States must prioritize loan applications from entities that meet criteria related to hiring workers from the underserved community, providing classes or educational information about a healthful diet, sourcing food from local urban farms and gardens, or demonstrating existing supply chain relationships or expertise in the grocery industry.
Protect Farmers from the SEC Act This bill prohibits the Securities and Exchange Commission from requiring the disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions related to agricultural products.
Journalism Competition and Preservation Act of 2022 This bill sets out a process through which certain broadcast or digital news providers may collectively negotiate with covered online platforms (e.g., social media companies) regarding use of the news providers' content by the platforms. Specifically, the bill authorizes an eligible provider (e.g., one with no more than 1,500 full-time employees and nonnetwork news broadcasters that engage in specified news practices) to jointly form an entity with other eligible providers to negotiate the pricing, terms, and conditions by which certain online platforms use the providers' content. A covered platform is generally one that (1) has at least 50 million monthly domestic users, and (2) is owned or controlled by a person with either sales or a market capitalization that exceeds a specified amount or at least one billion monthly users worldwide. The bill establishes requirements concerning the formation, governance, operation, and termination of the joint negotiation entity. It also exempts from antitrust laws certain actions by a joint negotiation entity (e.g., providers jointly denying a platform's access to the providers' content). The bill outlines requirements governing the conduct of the negotiations by, for example, requiring the parties to negotiate in good faith. Additionally, the bill provides for private rights of action if the requirements for a negotiation are not met and establishes requirements for arbitration in limited circumstances. The Government Accountability Office must study the impact of the joint negotiations, including their effects on local and regional news and the employment of journalists. In general, the bill's provisions terminate six years after its enactment.
HRES 1483 is a symbolic House resolution supporting National Rural Health Day, introduced in November 2022. It recognizes the challenges rural health care faces - including hospital closures, workforce shortages, and barriers to services - impacting approximately 60 million rural residents. The resolution expresses support for the day's goals, celebrates rural health care providers, and affirms a commitment to improving rural health care accessibility and affordability. As a non-binding resolution, it does not create new policies or funding but serves as a formal acknowledgment of rural health care needs.
This concurrent resolution affirms the commitments in the Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women's Health and Strengthening the Family and applauds the signatory countries for their dedication to advancing women's health, protecting life at every stage while affirming that there is no international right to abortion, and upholding the importance of the family as foundational to society. The resolution calls on President Biden to once again add the United States as a signatory to the Geneva Consensus Declaration.
This concurrent resolution affirms the commitments in the Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women's Health and Strengthening the Family and applauds the signatory countries for their dedication to advancing women's health, protecting life at every stage while affirming that there is no international right to abortion, and upholding the importance of the family as foundational to society. The resolution calls on President Biden to once again add the United States as a signatory to the Geneva Consensus Declaration.
Restoring Military Focus Act This bill eliminates the position of Chief Diversity Officer within the Department of Defense (DOD), as well as the position of Senior Advisor for Diversity and Inclusion within the military departments. Additionally, the bill prohibits the use of federal funds to establish similar positions to that of Chief Diversity Officer or Senior Advisor for Diversity and Inclusion within DOD.
Reinvesting In Shoreline Economies and Ecosystems Act of 2022 or the RISEE Act of 2022 This bill expands the amount of revenue generated from leases for energy development on federal land or submerged lands in the Outer Continental Shelf that is shared with certain states and coastal communities. For example, the bill dedicates a percentage of the revenue generated from offshore wind leases for coastal states. Currently, this revenue is deposited in the U.S. Treasury. In addition, the bill increases the amount of revenue generated from offshore oil and gas leases that is shared with states under the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act. States must use the funding from the revenue for specified purposes, such as coastal restoration, conservation, or infrastructure.
Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act This bill requires each federal agency to develop assessments of their software inventories and software licenses and a plan to reduce costs by consolidating licenses and adopting enterprise license agreements to the greatest extent practicable. The bill also requires the Office of Management and Budget and the Government Accountability Office to report on various government-wide issues relating to federal software licenses and inventories.
Interactive Federal Review Act This bill revises the environmental review process for federal-aid highway projects. Specifically, the Department of Transportation (DOT) must encourage recipients of federal highway funding to utilize interactive, digital, cloud-based platforms when carrying out environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA); select at least 10 federal-aid highway projects to demonstrate the use of interactive, digital, cloud-based platforms in carrying out the environmental impact analysis and community engagement processes under NEPA; and publish technology-neutral best practice guidance to encourage sponsors of projects that receive federal funds from DOT to use an interactive, digital, cloud-based platform in carrying out the environmental impact analysis and community engagement processes required under NEPA.
Voluntary Specialized Accreditation for Background and Home Studies Act This bill modifies intercountry adoption provisions to include voluntary accreditation relating to performing a background study on a child or performing a home study on a prospective adoptive parent.
