SRES 462 designates November 2021 as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month and expresses support for early detection and treatment of lung cancer. The resolution encourages public awareness and educational activities to promote lung cancer screening among eligible individuals, particularly those with risk factors like family history or environmental exposures. It highlights the disease's high mortality rates (131,880 estimated deaths in 2021) and disparities in screening access, such as lower screening rates among eligible Americans (2.8-7.2% annually). The resolution does not create new laws but aims to foster broader recognition of lung cancer prevention and early intervention efforts.
This resolution (SRES 463) expresses the U.S. Senate's support for Stomach Cancer Awareness Month in November 2021. It acknowledges stomach cancer's high mortality rate (11,180 U.S. deaths estimated in 2021) and its disproportionate impact on racial and ethnic minorities. The resolution supports public education about stomach cancer symptoms, recognizes the need for more research into early detection, and encourages states and localities to participate in awareness efforts. It has no binding effect but formally endorses awareness goals.
This Senate resolution (SRES 464) expresses symbolic support for National Adoption Month (November) and National Adoption Day (November 20), encouraging public awareness of children awaiting adoption. It does not create new laws or allocate funding but urges U.S. citizens to consider adoption and support efforts to provide safety and permanency for children in foster care. The resolution highlights challenges like the pandemic's impact on foster care systems while affirming that every child deserves a permanent family. It directly affects no specific group through policy changes - it is a non-binding statement of support endorsed by 30+ senators.
SRES 437 is a Senate resolution designating November 8, 2021, as "National First-Generation College Celebration Day." It symbolically recognizes first-generation college students - those whose parents did not earn bachelor’s degrees - and honors the 1965 Higher Education Act, which established key programs like Federal TRIO and Pell Grants supporting these students. The resolution does not create new laws or funding but urges nationwide acknowledgment of first-gen students’ contributions to education and workforce development. It directly affects awareness and recognition for this student group, linking their experiences to the historical context of the Higher Education Act.
TSA Reaching Across Nationalities, Societies, and Languages to Advance Traveler Education Act or the TRANSLATE Act This bill directs the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to develop a plan to ensure that TSA material disseminated in major airports is better understood by people accessing such airports, including by foreign language speakers and people with vision or hearing impairments. In developing the plan, the TSA must take into consideration data regarding international enplanement and local populations surrounding major airports.
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish the Advisory Committee on United States Outlying Areas and Freely Associated States to provide advice and guidance to the VA on matters relating to veterans residing in American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. Among other duties, the committee must advise the VA on how to improve its programs and services to better serve veterans living in the listed areas.
This resolution provides for further consideration of H.R. 5376 (commonly referred to as the Build Back Better Act) and requires that the accompanying technical amendment be considered adopted.
DHS Acquisition Review Board Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish an Acquisition Review Board to support the Management Directorate in managing DHS acquisitions. The bill lists the board's responsibilities, which include determining whether a proposed acquisition has met the requirements of key phases of the acquisition life cycle framework and is able to proceed to the next phase. The chair of the board must ensure that all actions and decisions made pursuant to the board's responsibilities are documented in an acquisition decision memorandum that includes specified elements, such as the rationale for the decision.
This resolution designates November 2021 as National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. It also encourages individuals to increase their understanding and awareness of care at the end of life.
HRES 795 is a procedural resolution that enables the full House to vote on H. Res. 789, which proposes censuring Representative Paul Gosar. It sets specific rules for debate: one hour of time equally divided between the chair and ranking member of the House Ethics Committee, with no further amendments allowed. This resolution does not censure Gosar itself but streamlines the process for the House to consider the censure resolution. The bill directly affects House members by determining how they will debate and vote on the censure motion.
This resolution (1) censures Representative Paul Gosar for posting a certain video on his social media accounts that depicts violence against Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and President Joseph R. Biden , and (2) removes him from the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on Oversight and Reform.
Protections for Student Veterans Act This bill authorizes service members who are utilizing Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) educational assistance benefits to withdraw or take a leave of absence after they receive orders for active service, inactive-duty training, or state active duty and addresses matters related to VA educational assistance for flight training. Institutions of higher education are prohibited from taking adverse actions (e.g., assigning a failing grade) against such service members for withdrawing or taking a leave of absence. The bill requires institutions of higher education to refund all tuition and fees (including for housing) for the academic term for which the service member withdraws. In situations where the service member takes a leave of absence, the institution of higher education must assign a grade of incomplete for the applicable term and permit the member to complete the academic term after the period of service. The bill adjusts requirements related to utilizing VA educational assistance for flight training purposes, including by removing the requirement that an individual must possess a valid private pilot certificate and meet certain medical requirements to utilize such assistance. Individuals enrolled in a program of education at an institution of higher learning in which flight training is required may elect to receive accelerated payments of tuition and fees if they also elect to receive educational counseling. The bill also specifies the calculation and determination of such fees, as well as the calculation of available entitlement in cases of accelerated payments.
