Protecting Married Seniors from Impoverishment Act This bill makes permanent certain provisions regarding Medicaid eligibility that protect against spousal impoverishment for recipients of home and community-based services. Under current law, these provisions expire on September 30, 2023.
Building U.S. Infrastructure by Leveraging Demands for Skills or the BUILDS Act This bill requires the Department of Labor to award implementation or renewal grants to eligible industry or sector partnerships to achieve certain job training and employment objectives with respect to targeted infrastructure industries (e.g., transportation, construction, energy, information technology, or utilities industries). Partnerships may include representatives of businesses, labor organizations, and education or training institutions. Eligible grant activities include evaluating workforce needs in a local area, developing work-based learning programs, recruiting individuals with barriers to employment for such programs, and providing employment support services.
Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act of 20 21 This bill makes it illegal to possess, buy, sell, or transport shark fins or any product containing shark fins, except for certain dogfish fins. A person may possess a shark fin that was lawfully taken consistent with a license or permit under certain circumstances. Penalties are imposed for violations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.The maximum civil penalty for each violation shall be $100,000, or the fair market value of the shark fins involved, whichever is greater.
Healthy Families Act This bill provides for paid and unpaid sick leave for employees to meet their own medical needs and those of their families. It requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide their employees with at least one hour of earned paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 56 hours of paid sick leave in a year. An employer with fewer than 15 employees may also provide the same amount of paid sick leave, but may opt out of such requirement, in which case such employer must provide its employees at least 56 hours of unpaid leave in a year. An employee may use sick leave for absences (1) resulting from a physical or mental illness, injury or medical condition; (2) resulting from obtaining professional medical diagnosis or care, or preventive medical care; (3) to care for a child, parent, spouse, a domestic partner, or other blood or close relative; and (4) resulting from domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The bill makes it unlawful for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of an employee's right to accrue sick leave as provided by this bill. An employee may take legal action to enforce the right to sick leave granted by this bill and the Department of Labor must investigate complaints of violations of the requirements of this bill. Labor is authorized to conduct a public awareness campaign to educate and inform the public of the requirements for paid sick leave provided by this bill.
Wage Equity Act of 2021 This bill addresses workplace wage discrimination based on sex. Specifically, it limits the acceptable reasons for wage disparities based on sex to legitimate business-related factors unrelated to sex. Italso protects from liability for such discrimination those employers who conduct a job and wage analysis audit to identify wage disparities and take reasonable steps to remedy any such disparities. Further, the bill prohibits employers from relying on, or requesting, the wage history of a prospective employee for hiring and wage determination purposes unless it is voluntarily provided by the prospective employee. Employers generally may not prohibit employees from inquiring about, or discussing, wage information concerning another employee or from requesting information from an employer about wage differentials. Finally, the bill permits the Department of Labor to establish a grant program for negotiation skills education for women and girls. It also requires the Government Accountability Office to study and report on the causes and effects of sex-based wage disparities.
Opioid Settlement Accountability Act This bill establishes certain requirements with respect to the disposition of funds received by states from litigation against opioid manufacturers and distributors. Specifically, the bill requires states to use such funds to address opioid use, such as through (1) opioid prevention and treatment services, (2) health care practitioner training, (3) first responder equipment, and (4) social support services. Additionally, the bill prohibits the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from considering such funds that are recovered or paid to a state on or after December 31, 2023, as an overpayment that reduces the state's payment, or that is subject to recoupment, under Medicaid. The bill applies retroactively.
Resetting the Impact Act of 2021 or the TRIA Act of 2021 This bill requires certain data collection and recommendations relating to a Medicare post-acute care prospective payment system to incorporate the effects of COVID-19 on providers and patients. Current law requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission to develop a prototype for a unified Medicare payment system for post-acute care that is based primarily on patient characteristics (e.g., cognitive ability, functional status, or impairments) rather than the provider setting (e.g., skilled nursing facility, home health agency, inpatient rehabilitation facility, or long-term care hospital). The bill requires the prototype to account for the role of post-acute care providers during public health emergencies, particularly in light of the COVID-19 emergency and the related effects on such providers and their patients. The bill also delays the development of the prototype until two years after the later of January 1, 2022, and the date by which the CMS has collected eight calendar quarters of data after the emergency ends and other changes have been implemented.
Protecting Access to Ground Ambulance Medical Services Act of 2021 This bill modifies Medicare payment of ground ambulance services in rural areas. Specifically, the bill extends the specialized rate increase for such services for an additional five years (until January 1, 2028). The bill also requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to (1) allow an area that has 1,000 or fewer individuals per square mile to retain its status as a rural area even if it would otherwise no longer qualify, and (2) establish an appeals process for providers to seek reconsideration of a change in an area's status.
This resolution honors and recognizes the patriotism and contributions made by generations of veterans service organizations and commends the members of such organizations for their dedicated service to members of the Armed Forces, veterans, their families, and their communities. Additionally, the resolution encourages citizens to volunteer their support and services to veterans service organizations and to promote awareness of the contributions of such organizations to members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their families.
State Transportation Flexibility Act This bill provides flexibility for a state to opt out of the federal-aid highway program. Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Transportation (DOT) to implement a direct federal-aid highway program that permits a state to waive its right to receive funds under the program and receive a prorated amount of taxes apportioned to the Highway Trust Fund (other than for the Mass Transit Account); sets forth responsibilities for states that elect to waive their rights, including that such states must agree to obligate or expend program amounts exclusively for projects that are eligible for surface transportation program funding; and directs DOT to implement a similar alternative funding program for public transportation programs.
Permanently Preserving America's Investment in Manufacturing Act This bill makes permanent the allowance for depreciation, amortization, or depletion for purposes of determining the income limitation on the tax deduction for business interest.
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.
