Southern Border Communities Reimbursement Act of 2021 This bill authorizes reimbursement to jurisdictions and organizations for the costs of providing humanitarian relief to aliens, including the cost of emergency preparedness activities. The reimbursement authorized under this bill shall be for FY2021-FY2023 and shall be distributed by the Emergency Food and Shelter Program National Board.
Rebalance for an Effective Defense Uniformed and Civilian Employees Act or the REDUCE Act This bill limits full-time positions in the Department of Defense (DOD), in each of FY2026-FY2030, to not more than 85% of the number of such positions at the end of FY2021. Not more than 1,000 of the positions may be career appointees within the Senior Executive Service. DOD may offer voluntary separation incentive payments and voluntary early retirement payments to achieve the reductions but must use involuntary measures, beginning at the start of FY2021, to achieve required reductions in personnel levels if voluntary measures are inadequate.
Coronavirus Front-Line Responders Commemorative Coin Act This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 50,000 $5 gold coins, 400,000 $1 silver coins, and 300,000 half dollar clad coins in honor and commemoration of the work of the frontline responders to the coronavirus (i.e., the virus that causes COVID-19) pandemic. All surcharges received from the sale of coins issued under this bill shall be promptly paid to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Foundation to support the health care response to infectious diseases and pandemics.
American Family Act of 2021 This bill modifies the child tax credit to (1) make the credit fully refundable, (2) increase the amount of the credit and allow an additional credit for children who are under six years of age, (3) require the amount of the credit to be adjusted annually for inflation, and (4) require the Department of the Treasury to establish a program for making advance payments of the credit on a monthly basis.
Expand Medicaid Now Act This bill temporarily increases the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (i.e., federal matching rate) for states that elect to participate in Medicaid expansion (pursuant to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) if they have not already done so.
Abandoning Online Censorship Act or the AOC Act This bill repeals Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934, which protects a provider or user of an interactive computer service (e.g., social media company) from liability for screening or blocking objectionable content.
Education for New Dispositions on Stigma Act or the END Stigma Act This bill authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services to award grants to institutions of higher education to educate students about substance use disorders.
Essential Worker Pandemic Compensation Act of 2021 This bill compensates specified essential workers who die or are hospitalized as a result of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) or related complications. Specifically, the bill provides death benefits to survivors of essential workers equal to the amount available under the public safety officer benefits program. Essential workers include those identified in the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency guidance or by a Special Master appointed by the Department of Health and Human Services. Such death benefits include additional payments to a surviving spouse or child enrolled in qualified postsecondary education. Further, essential workers who are hospitalized as a result of COVID-19 receive one half of the base death benefit amount.
Donna M. Doss Memorial Act of 2021 This bill designates the Rocksprings station of the U.S. Border Patrol located on West Main Street in Rocksprings, Texas, as the Donna M. Doss Border Patrol Station.
Climate Action Planning for Ports Act of 2021 This bill authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency to award grants for developing climate action plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or other air pollutants at ports or port facilities or implementing plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at one or more ports or port facilities. Climate action plans must demonstrate that the measures proposed to be implemented through the grants will do at least two of the following: improve energy efficiency at ports or port facilities, deploy technology or processes that reduce idling of vehicles at ports or port facilities, or reduce the direct emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants with a goal of achieving zero emissions.
Alerting Localities of Environmental Risks and Threats Act of 2021 This bill requires the owner or operator of a facility where hazardous chemicals are produced, used, or stored to hold a public meeting within 72 hours of the release of an extremely hazardous substance. The owner or operator must publish a notice in a local newspaper, giving at least 24 hours of notice before the public meeting. Such notice must be posted at a local library, other local government buildings, and on the facility's public website. The bill also requires the owner or operator of a facility to hold an annual public meeting, where specified information regarding the extremely hazardous substances at the facility must be disclosed. Notice for such meeting must be published in a local newspaper at least a week in advance of the meeting. The bill provides for a civil penalty if such public meeting and notice requirements are not met.
Disclosure; and Encouragement of Verification, Innovation, Cleaning, and Efficiency Act of 2021 or the DEVICE Act of 2021 This bill addresses design changes and reprocessing of medical devices. Specifically, medical device manufacturers must notify the Food and Drug Administration (1) before making changes to the design or reprocessing instructions of a device, and (2) no more than five days after widely disseminating to health care providers in a foreign country communications regarding changes to the design or reprocessing instructions of a device or regarding a safety concern about a device. (Reprocessing of medical devices is the process for cleaning and sterilizing or disinfecting devices for reuse.) A device may not be sold if the manufacturer violates these notification requirements.
