Reclaiming the Solar Supply Chain Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Energy to establish a program to award grants and loans to support a solar component manufacturing supply chain. Under the program, grants and loans must be used for (1) the construction of new facilities that manufacture solar components; and (2) retooling, retrofitting, or expanding existing facilities that manufacture solar components.
This resolution supports the designation of National Clean Energy Week.
Justice for the Living Victims of Lockerbie Act This bill establishes a mechanism for compensating certain victims of the bombing of Pan American Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988. Specifically, the Department of the Treasury must establish a fund to compensate qualifying victims of the bombing (generally, former employees of Pan American who were part of an earlier lawsuit seeking compensation from Libya for the bombing). The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission must establish a process for claimants to apply for compensation from the fund.
Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2021 This bill addresses harassment at institutions of higher education (IHEs). Specifically, the bill requires each IHE to include in its annual security report a statement of policy regarding harassment on the basis of a student's actual or perceived race, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth, a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth, and a sex stereotype), disability, or religion. In addition, the Department of Education may award grants to IHEs to initiate, expand, or improve programs to (1) prevent the harassment of students; (2) provide counseling or redress services to students who have been harassed or accused of subjecting other students to harassment; or (3) educate and train students, faculty, or staff to prevent harassment or address harassment if it occurs.
Community College to Career Fund in Higher Education Act This bill requires the Department of Education and the Department of Labor to award grants to community colleges for education and workforce training programs or related activities. Such programs or activities must lead to or expand opportunities for students to obtain recognized postsecondary credentials (e.g., associate degrees or industry-recognized certifications).
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2021 This bill expands two programs that compensate individuals who were exposed to radiation during certain nuclear testing or uranium mining and subsequently developed medical conditions, including cancers. First, the bill expands and extends a program that compensates individuals who were exposed to radiation from atmospheric nuclear testing or other sources and subsequently developed specified cancers. Under current law, this program compensates individuals who were present in a designated geographic area during a period of nuclear testing and certain individuals employed in uranium mining. The bill expands the designated areas to include Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and Guam and additional areas in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah; makes more individuals who worked in uranium mining eligible for the program; increases the amount of compensation awarded to and provides medical benefits for eligible claimants; and extends for 19 years following the bill's enactment the fund that supports this program and the statute of limitations for filing claims (currently, the program terminates on July 10, 2022). Second, the bill makes certain individuals employed in uranium mines or mills eligible for a program that compensates workers, including Department of Energy employees and contractors, for illnesses caused by occupational exposure to radiation and hazardous substances during development and testing of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile. The bill also establishes a grant program in the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences for institutions of higher education to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling among individuals without occupational exposure.
Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2021 This bill addresses harassment at institutions of higher education (IHEs). Specifically, the bill requires each IHE to include in its annual security report a statement of policy regarding harassment on the basis of a student's actual or perceived race, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth, a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth, and a sex stereotype), disability, or religion. In addition, the Department of Education may award grants to IHEs to initiate, expand, or improve programs to (1) prevent the harassment of students; (2) provide counseling or redress services to students who have been harassed or accused of subjecting other students to harassment; or (3) educate and train students, faculty, or staff to prevent harassment or address harassment if it occurs.
This resolution designates the week of September 19-September 25, 2021, as National Estuaries Week.
Acting on the Annual Duplication Report Act of 2021 This bill establishes requirements to facilitate the implementation of certain recommendations made by the Government Accountability Office. Specifically, the Department of Defense, through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, must review options for expanding the use of administrative surcharges under the foreign military sales program. The bill modifies the calculation of military housing contractor pay for privatized military housing. With respect to the Department of Education, the bill revises requirements regarding forbearance rules and default rates. The Department of Energy must conduct a review of options for a long-range target for the optimal size and configuration of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Department of Housing and Urban Development must report on the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), including (1) the adequacy of Ginnie Mae's guarantee fee for single-family mortgage-backed securities, (2) Ginnie Mae's workforce, and (3) alternate ways of overseeing Ginnie Mae. The Department of the Treasury must prescribe certain standards for the security of tax return information and information technology systems. The bill establishes a penalty for authorized providers of electronic filing services that fail to comply with electronic return security standards. The Internal Revenue Service must develop an organizational plan to coordinate all aspects of its efforts to protect return information while it is being held or transmitted by authorized providers of electronic filing services.
Helping Ensure Life- and Limb-Saving Access to Podiatric Physicians Act or the HELLPP Act This bill adds podiatrists as covered physicians under the Medicaid program. Additionally, the bill revises certain documentation requirements related to Medicare coverage of therapeutic shoes for individuals with diabetes. Finally, the bill subjects payments made to a Medicaid provider or supplier to a continuing levy for federal taxes owed by the provider or supplier.
Taskforce Recommending Improvements for Unaddressed Mental Perinatal & Postpartum Health for New Moms Act of 2021 or the TRIUMPH for New Moms Act of 2021 This bill temporarily establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services the Task Force on Maternal Mental Health. The task force must develop a national strategy for maternal mental health and report on best practices, policies, and programs to prevent, screen for, diagnose, treat, and reduce disparities in maternal mental health conditions. The report must identify opportunities for state- and local-level partnerships to address maternal mental health, and the task force must share those opportunities with state governors.
Securing the Rights our Veterans Earned Act or the SERVE Act This bill provides eligibility for specified Department of Veterans Affairs benefits to former members of the Armed Forces who were separated or discharged (honorably or otherwise) by reason of sexual orientation or gender identity.
