Information Transparency & Personal Data Control Act This bill requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to establish requirements for certain entities when they collect, transmit, store, process, use, or otherwise control sensitive personal information. Information relating to an identifiable individual is generally considered sensitive personal information. However, information that is publicly available is not considered sensitive. Specifically, these entities must (1) obtain affirmative consent from users for functionality related to the disclosure of sensitive personal information, (2) publish a privacy and data use policy that is readily understandable, (3) provide users the ability to opt-out of the sharing of their nonsensitive information, and (4) obtain at least once every two years a privacy audit that evaluates the sufficiency of the entity's data privacy and security controls. These requirements do not apply to the collection or sharing of sensitive or nonsensitive personal information for certain purposes such as detecting fraud or identity theft. The bill provides authority for the FTC and state attorneys general to enforce these requirements. Additionally, the FTC must hire 500 new employees to focus on privacy and data security.
Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct an interagency review of the status of women and lung cancer. The review must report on the status of existing research and current knowledge gaps; identify new opportunities for collaborative research to determine the causes of lung cancer and advance prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment; and provide recommendations for a national cancer screening strategy and public education campaign.
Energizing American Shipbuilding Act of 2021 This bill directs (1) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to require specified percentages of liquefied natural gas exports to be transported on vessels built or retrofitted in the United States and documented under its laws, and (2) the President to require specified percentages of crude oil exports to be transported on vessels built or retrofitted in the United States and documented under its laws. FERC and the President may waive these requirements under specified circumstances. The Energy Information Administration must collect and publish information on exports of natural gas and crude oil by vessels, including forecasts and data on those exports.
Protecting Access to Safe and Effective Medicines Act of 2021 This bill provides statutory authority for the existing Food and Drug Administration (FDA) practice of defining active ingredient more narrowly as active moiety in certain situations, such as when determining whether a new drug is entitled to a market exclusivity period or providing priority review of drugs for treating rare pediatric diseases. Generally, the FDA defines active moiety as the core molecule or ion in a drug responsible for the relevant physiological or pharmacological action. By contrast, the FDA defines an active ingredient as a component in a drug that is intended to furnish pharmacological activity or other direct effect. The FDA's existing practice of interpreting active ingredient as active moiety in certain situations, as statutorily authorized by this bill, tends to exclude some drugs from market exclusivity. The bill replaces references to active ingredient with active moiety in various statutes authorizing FDA activities.
Funding for Aviation Screeners and Threat Elimination Restoration Act or the FASTER Act This bill repeals the requirement that a portion of aviation security service fees collected from passengers be credited as offsetting receipts and deposited in the general fund of the Treasury. It requires such fees to be deposited into a separate account in the Treasury for expenditure to pay only the costs of activities and services for which the fee is imposed (i.e., aviation security screening).
This bill designates the portion of U.S. Route 80 from Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery, Alabama, as the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Highway.
This resolution condemns the February 1, 2021, military coup in Burma (Myanmar) and calls on Burmese authorities to allow journalists, human rights organizations, United Nations monitors, and humanitarian actors full and safe access to every part of the country. The resolution also asks neighboring countries to provide immediate and direct cross-border assistance to address the humanitarian needs of refugees.
Wastewater Efficiency and Treatment Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a Water and Energy Efficiency Program. Under the program, DOE must award grants to certain small public wastewater treatment facilities that serve disadvantaged communities or populations that do not exceed 10,000. The facilities must use the grants to conduct energy efficiency audits of the facilities and update equipment based on the audits. In addition, DOE must provide loan guarantees to eligible municipalities and Indian tribes for (1) projects that convert waste in the treatment process of wastewater treatment facilities into renewable fuels, biosolids, or other byproducts; and (2) projects that will assist in transitioning facilities towards the use of energy-efficient technologies. In carrying out the program, DOE must establish a small-scale extension services program to provide assistance to rural communities through grants, outreach, training, and technical assistance regarding energy-efficient technologies at wastewater treatment facilities in eligible municipalities and tribes.
Assault Weapons Ban of 2021 This bill makes it a crime to knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon (SAW) or large capacity ammunition feeding device (LCAFD). The prohibition does not apply to a firearm that is (1) manually operated by bolt, pump, lever, or slide action; (2) permanently inoperable; (3) an antique; or (4) a rifle or shotgun specifically identified by make and model. The bill also exempts from the prohibition the following, with respect to a SAW or LCAFD: importation, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession related to certain law enforcement efforts, or authorized tests or experiments; importation, sale, transfer, or possession related to securing nuclear materials; and possession by a retired law enforcement officer. The bill permits continued possession, sale, or transfer of a grandfathered SAW, which must be securely stored. A licensed gun dealer must conduct a background check prior to the sale or transfer of a grandfathered SAW between private parties. The bill permits continued possession of, but prohibits sale or transfer of, a grandfathered LCAFD. Newly manufactured LCAFDs must display serial number identification. Newly manufactured SAWs and LCAFDs must display the date of manufacture. The bill also allows a state or local government to use Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program funds to compensate individuals who surrender a SAW or LCAFD under a buy-back program.
Police Training and Independent Review Act of 2021 This bill authorizes the Department of Justice to award grants to states that (1) require law enforcement officers to be trained on fair and impartial policing (e.g., diversity and anti-bias training), and (2) require an independent prosecutor to be appointed to investigate and prosecute an alleged offense involving the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer that results in a death or injury.
Work Opportunities and Resources to Keep Nonprofit Organizations Well Act or the WORK NOW Act This bill requires the Department of the Treasury to establish a grant program to provide emergency relief to certain nonprofit organizations, prioritizing organizations that provide services related to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic. Organizations receiving funding must use not less than 60% of these funds to hire former and new employees.
Disaster Safe Power Grid Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Energy to establish within its Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability a grant program that provides incentives for electric utilities to increase the resiliency of the power grid to withstand natural disasters and reduce the risk of wildfires.
