This bill establishes a bipartisan advisory committee within the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to study the integrity and administration of the November 2020 general election. The committee must also make recommendations to the EAC, state legislatures, and Congress on best practices for administering federal elections, including best practices to prevent improper voting and increase the security of vote-by-mail ballots.
Security Clearance Improvement Act of 2021 This bill requires the Office of Personnel Management to revise Standard Form 86 (Questionnaire for National Security Positions) to specifically include questions regarding an individual's (1) affiliation with organizations or movements that spread conspiracy theories and false information about the U.S. government, and (2) participation in the activities that occurred at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, or in similar activities.
This bill requires departments or agencies that provide federal benefits to verify the eligibility of any beneficiary age 105 or older. This must occur on a semiannual basis.
Properly Reducing Overexemptions for Sports Act or the PRO Sports Act This bill removes professional football leagues from the list of tax-exempt organizations. The bill also prohibits an organization or entity from being treated as tax-exempt if it (1) is a professional sports league, organization, or association, a substantial activity of which is to foster national or international professional sports competitions; and (2) has annual gross receipts in excess of $10 million.
Shoring Up Personal Protective and Lifesaving Indispensable Equipment Stockpile Act or the SUPPLIES Act This bill establishes a temporary grant program to assist small businesses in producing covered goods (e.g., ventilators, surgical masks, and hand sanitizer) that are needed to address the national emergency related to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). A grant recipient must prioritize the domestic sale of covered goods and refrain from selling such goods at a price that grossly exceeds the average price for the 90-day period prior to January 31, 2020.
Make Marriage Great Again Act of 2021 This bill addresses the tax effect commonly known as the marriage penalty by modifying the tax brackets and income thresholds that married individuals use to calculate their tax liability.
U.S. Citrus Protection Act This bill prohibits importing commercially produced fresh citrus fruit originating in China.
Federal Hiring Improvement Reform and Enforcement Act or the Federal HIRE Act This bill provides direct-hire authority to federal agencies for purposes of filling positions in the competitive service for which there is a severe shortage of candidates, as determined by the agency. Direct-hire authority is an expedited hiring authority that currently may be issued by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to fill positions in the competitive service for which there is a critical hiring need or severe shortage of candidates. OPM may issue such authority to agencies upon written request or upon an independent assessment that there is a critical hiring need or severe shortage of candidates for specific positions.
Presidential Tax Transparency Act This bill requires the President, the Vice President, and certain candidates for President and Vice President to disclose federal income tax returns for the ten most recent taxable years. The returns must be disclosed to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which must make the returns publicly available after redacting information that is necessary for protecting against identity theft, such as Social Security numbers. If the tax returns are not disclosed to the FEC as required by this bill, the Internal Revenue Service must provide the returns to the FEC upon receiving a written request from the FEC.
Incentivizing Medicaid Expansion Act of 2021 This bill provides an enhanced federal matching rate to every state that expands Medicaid coverage for individuals who are newly eligible under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, regardless of when such expansion takes place. Under current law, the enhanced Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) is equivalent to 100% in 2014 through 2016, 95% in 2017, 94% in 2018, 93% in 2019, and 90% thereafter. The bill retains this enhanced FMAP, but bases it on a term of years rather than on specific dates. The bill applies retroactively.
Nurses Certification And Recognition of Experience Act of 2021 or the Nurses CARE Act of 2021 This bill expands qualifying training and competency requirements for nurse aides in Medicare skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and Medicaid nursing facilities (NFs) for nurse aides who initially train and work during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Currently, SNFs and NFs may not hire nurse aides for longer than four months unless they meet certain training and certification requirements. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has waived some of these requirements during the emergency period so as to allow facilities to maintain adequate staffing levels. The bill allows individuals who complete a training program, competency assessment, and at least 80 hours of supervised work experience as a temporary nurse aide during the emergency period, and who meet other specified competency requirements, to qualify for prolonged work as nurse aides in SNFs and NFs beyond the emergency period.
This bill makes the counting of electoral college votes in Congress a National Special Security Event. A National Special Security Event is a designated event that, by virtue of its political, economic, social, or religious significance, may be the target of terrorism or other criminal activity. This designation authorizes the use of the U.S. Secret Service and certain funds to respond to the security needs resulting from such an event.
