Drug Cartel Terrorist Designation Act This bill directs the Department of State to designate four specified drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. (Among other things, such a designation allows the Department of the Treasury to require U.S. financial institutions to block transactions involving the organization.) The four specified cartels in the bill are the Gulf Cartel, the Cartel Del Noreste, the Cartel de Sinaloa, and the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion. The bill also requires the State Department to submit a detailed report on those four cartels and any other cartels it may identify. Based on this report, the State Department must designate as a foreign terrorist organization any such identified cartel (or faction thereof) that meets certain criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization. The bill specifies that it may not be construed to expand eligibility for asylum.
The RULES Act requires asylum seekers to apply only at official U.S. ports of entry, not elsewhere in the country. It prohibits releasing applicants into the United States while their asylum application is pending. This directly affects individuals seeking asylum who cross the border without entering through designated ports. The law does not apply to people already inside the U.S. without authorization or who overstayed their visa.
S 333, the Homeowner Energy Freedom Act, repeals three specific sections of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that established energy efficiency programs for homeowners. These sections included a high-efficiency electric home rebate program and related funding mechanisms. The bill also rescinds unobligated funds from those repealed programs and makes a minor conforming change to another IRA section. This legislation directly affects homeowners who would have qualified for the repealed rebate programs, eliminating those specific federal energy efficiency incentives.
This bill permanently prohibits U.S. foreign assistance funds from being used for abortions, involuntary sterilizations, or related biomedical research. It amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Peace Corps Act to block funding for organizations supporting coercive abortion or sterilization programs. The law directly affects all U.S. government programs distributing foreign aid, including international health and development initiatives. It ensures funds cannot cover abortion services as family planning, lobbying on abortion, or programs involving coercion.
Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act This bill allows, beginning in 2028, for Medicare coverage and payment for multi-cancer early detection screening tests that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and that are used to screen for cancer across many cancer types, if the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services determines such coverage is appropriate. Coverage is limited to those under a certain age (age 68 in 2028, increased by one year every year thereafter) and to one test every 11 months.
This resolution designates the week of January 26-February 1, 2025, as "National School Choice Week" to recognize the range of K-12 education options available to families, including public schools, charters, private schools, and homeschooling. It does not create new policies, funding, or requirements but encourages parents to learn about educational choices and promotes public awareness through events. The Senate formally acknowledges this annual observance without binding legislative action.
The A PLUS Act (S 309) allows states to consolidate federal education funds for eligible programs into a single, flexible funding stream, reducing administrative complexity and enabling states to manage resources more efficiently to improve student achievement. States must submit a "declaration of intent" detailing which programs they will consolidate (excluding special education funds), commit to public accountability through annual reports on student progress, and ensure federal funds supplement - rather than replace - state education funding. The bill limits administrative costs to 1% of consolidated federal funds (3% if excluding Title I funds) and requires states to report how funds address achievement gaps for disadvantaged students. This directly affects states and local school districts that adopt the declaration, shifting how they administer and report on federal education dollars.
This bill, S 317 (Charitable Act), creates a new federal income tax deduction for charitable contributions for individuals who do not itemize deductions (the majority of taxpayers). It allows these taxpayers to deduct up to one-third of their standard deduction amount for charitable gifts in 2026 and 2027. The bill also eliminates penalties related to charitable deduction errors under tax code sections 6662 and 6664. The changes apply to tax returns filed for 2026 and 2027 tax years.
This bill establishes the Commission on Federal Natural Disaster Resilience and Recovery within the Office of Management and Budget. The Commission will review federal disaster programs and recommend improvements to their efficiency, funding, and effectiveness for agencies like FEMA, HUD, and the Department of Homeland Security. It must submit a final report with specific recommendations to Congress within two years, including a comprehensive review of all federally funded disaster resilience and recovery programs. The Commission will include diverse members from government, emergency services, infrastructure, and community organizations, with appointments required within 120 days of enactment.
S 271, the "Stop Illegal Reentry Act," increases penalties for immigrants who re-enter the U.S. after being denied entry, deported, or removed without authorization. It directly affects individuals previously removed or excluded from the U.S. who return without prior consent from the Secretary of Homeland Security. Key provisions include raising maximum prison terms to 10 years for re-entry after prior removals linked to drug crimes, violent offenses, or multiple removals, and mandating a minimum 5-year sentence for those convicted twice of re-entry or of serious crimes before removal. The bill also clarifies that "removal" includes agreements made during criminal trials, expanding the scope of affected individuals.
The Fairness for Crime Victims Act of 2025 requires that the Crime Victims Fund - used to support victims of crime, particularly child abuse, sexual assault, and domestic violence - be maintained at or above a three-year average funding level in annual appropriations bills. It adds a procedural rule in both the Senate and House to block any provision that would reduce the fund below this average, unless the reduction is under $2 billion. This rule aims to prevent Congress from withholding funds collected from convicted criminals (which have historically been underdisbursed, with over $10 billion withheld since 2000) and ensures consistent funding for victim services. The bill does not alter the fund’s purpose but enforces existing law by requiring full disbursement of collected funds.
This bill increases criminal penalties for individuals who re-enter the U.S. after being deported, removed, or excluded. It sets a maximum 5-year prison sentence for most cases, but adds up to 10 years for those with prior drug/crime convictions or multiple prior removals. For serious cases - such as aggravated felonies or two prior reentry convictions - it mandates a 5-20 year prison term. The law directly affects people who return without authorization after formal immigration removal proceedings.
