Sen. Mark Kelly

Maddy summaryThis bill reauthorizes funding for the Federal Lands Access Program, which provides financial assistance to build and maintain roads connecting communities to federal lands like national parks and forests. It directly affects state and local governments, transportation agencies, and communities that rely on these roads for access to public lands. The legislation appropriates specific amounts from the Highway Trust Fund for each fiscal year from 2027 through 2031, with funding increasing slightly each year. The program supports infrastructure projects that improve transportation routes to federal lands, facilitating recreation, tourism, and emergency access.

Maddy summaryThe VSAFE Act of 2025 creates a new "Veterans Scam and Fraud Evasion Officer" within the Department of Veterans Affairs to combat fraud targeting veterans. This position serves as the central point of contact for veterans, families, and caregivers, responsible for developing fraud prevention communication, training VA staff, promoting the VSAFE Fraud Hotline and website, and coordinating with agencies like the IRS and DOJ. The bill requires the officer to monitor fraud metrics, establish consistent guidance for identifying and reporting scams, and consult with veterans' organizations. It does not authorize new full-time staff and includes a minor extension of a pension payment deadline (Section 3).

Maddy summaryThe Love Lives On Act of 2025 modifies veterans' and military survivors' benefit rules to prevent remarriage from automatically ending eligibility. It directly affects surviving spouses of veterans or military members who remarried, ensuring they retain access to key benefits. Key provisions include: (1) preventing termination of veterans' dependency compensation (under 38 U.S.C. §1311/1562) due to remarriage; (2) stopping termination of military Survivor Benefit Plan annuities solely for remarriage, with specific rules for those who remarried before age 55; and (3) expanding TRICARE coverage to include remarried widows/widowers whose subsequent marriage ended (via death, divorce, or annulment). These changes restore or maintain benefits that were previously lost upon remarriage.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows Purple Heart veterans who served after September 11, 2001, to transfer unused Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits to family members. Specifically, veterans can transfer up to 36 months of benefits to eligible dependents (like spouses or children) without affecting their own remaining benefits. It sets rules for when dependents can use transferred benefits - children must complete high school or turn 18 first, and benefits expire by age 26 unless used for caregiving or due to school closures. The bill also ensures transferred benefits aren’t treated as marital property and includes special provisions for caregivers of injured veterans or emergency school closures.

Maddy summaryThis bill, titled the Community Water Project Acceleration Act, would allow certain small water resources development projects to bypass formal environmental review requirements. It directly affects non-Federal sponsors who lead construction work on water projects funded by federal programs like the Water Resources Reform and Development Act or environmental infrastructure assistance programs. The key provision requires the Secretary of the Army to designate these projects as categorically excluded from National Environmental Policy Act reviews if they meet specific cost thresholds, such as having a federal share under $6 million or a federal share under 15 percent with total costs not exceeding $35 million. The bill mandates that the Secretary of the Army issue regulations to implement these exclusions within 150 days of enactment and complete the designation process within 180 days.

Maddy summaryThe Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act (S 836) extends COPPA protections to teens aged 13-17 by requiring websites, apps, and online services to obtain verifiable consent from parents for children or from teens themselves before collecting or using their personal information for purposes beyond the service. It defines "personal information" broadly to include biometric data, voice recordings, persistent identifiers, and geolocation information, and prohibits using such information for individual-specific advertising without consent. The bill mandates clear notice about data practices and gives children and teens rights to access, correct, and delete their personal information. Additionally, it requires the FTC to conduct studies on mobile app oversight and the GAO to study teen privacy in financial technology products.

Maddy summaryThis bill, titled the Working Americans' Tax Cut Act, proposes two main tax changes: it creates an alternative maximum tax rate of 25.5% for low- and middle-income individuals earning less than 175% of a cost-of-living exemption, and it imposes a progressive surcharge on high-income individuals earning over $1 million. The low-income provision calculates taxes based on income above a living expense threshold that adjusts annually with inflation, while the high-income surcharge applies rates of 5%, 10%, and 12% to income brackets above $1 million, $2 million, and $5 million respectively. Both provisions use modified adjusted gross income as the base for calculations and apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2025. The bill would directly affect individual taxpayers by altering how their income is taxed under the Internal Revenue Code.

Living Donor Protection Act of 2025 This bill prohibits life insurance, disability insurance, and long-term insurance carriers from denying or otherwise restricting coverage for living organ donors. Specifically, carriers may not deny, cancel, vary premiums, or otherwise impose conditions on policies based on an individual's status as a living organ donor. The bill also expressly specifies that recovery from organ-donation surgery constitutes a serious health condition that entitles eligible employees to job-protected medical leave. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services must update educational materials on living organ donation to include information about the benefits and risks of living organ donation and the impact of donation on insurance access, particularly with respect to the bill's changes.

Maddy summary# Summary of the Water Rights Settlement Act This is a comprehensive U.S. federal law establishing a settlement agreement regarding water rights for the Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, and San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe. The key elements include: 1. **Water Delivery System**: Establishes the "iiná bá - paa tuwaqat'si pipeline" (a water delivery system) to provide municipal water to the tribes, with specific provisions for design, construction, and operation. 2. **Water Rights Settlement**: Creates a comprehensive settlement of water rights claims that: - Replaces and satisfies all claims of the tribes against the United States - Provides specific water entitlements (including Navajo Nation Cibola Water, Navajo Nation Fourth Priority Water, Hopi Tribe Cibola Water, and Upper Basin water) - Establishes detailed accounting rules for different types of water under the Colorado River Compact 3. **Enforceability Requirements**: Sets a deadline (June 30, 2035) by which the settlement must be fully implemented, with specific conditions that must be met for the settlement to become effective. 4. **San Juan Southern Paiute Reservation**: Creates the San Juan Southern Paiute Reservation on approximately 5,400 acres within the Navajo Indian Reservation, with provisions for boundary surveys, legal descriptions, and jurisdiction. 5. **Sovereign Immunity Waiver**: Provides limited waivers of sovereign immunity for the tribes in specific legal proceedings related to the settlement. 6. **Water Accounting Rules**: Establishes specific accounting rules for different types of water deliveries (Upper Basin vs. Lower Basin) that affect how water is counted under the Colorado River Compact. 7. **Unique Circumstances**: Acknowledges that the water transfers and diversions authorized under this act address "critical Tribal and non-Indian water supply needs under unique circumstances," including the Navajo Nation's location in both the Upper and Lower Basins of the Colorado River. The law also includes provisions to preserve existing water rights, prevent the law from establishing precedents for other tribes' water rights, and ensure that environmental laws remain enforceable.

Maddy summaryThis bill, titled the Gas Prices Relief Act of 2026, would temporarily eliminate the federal gasoline tax for fuel sold between the date of enactment and October 1, 2026. The legislation directly affects gasoline producers, dealers, and consumers by setting the tax rate to zero during this period while requiring producers and dealers to pass the savings directly to consumers. To maintain funding for road infrastructure and environmental programs, the bill mandates that the Treasury transfer equivalent amounts from the general fund to the Highway Trust Fund and the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund. Additionally, the bill includes enforcement provisions that impose monetary penalties on fuel sellers who fail to pass the tax savings on to consumers.