Labor & Employment

HR 612, the Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2025, provides federal funding to help health care facilities improve safety. It authorizes the Secretary to award grants to hospitals, clinics, and other health care providers to cover costs for physical security (like structural improvements) and cyber security (such as data privacy tools and video surveillance systems). These grants directly help health care providers protect their facilities, staff, and patients from security threats. The bill creates a new funding mechanism under the Public Health Service Act, making specific security upgrades eligible for federal support.

Saving the Civil Service Act This bill generally prohibits changes to the classification of positions in the competitive service and excepted service unless certain conditions are met. (Competitive service positions are subject to competitive examination while excepted service positions are appointed under one of five schedules. Competitive service positions have notice and appeal requirements for adverse actions that are not applicable to most excepted positions, including those of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character under Schedule C.) On October 21, 2020, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that placed executive agency positions that are of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character, and that are not normally subject to change as a result of a presidential transition, under a new Schedule F in the excepted service. The order was subsequently revoked by President Joe Biden. The bill prohibits executive agency positions in the competitive service from being placed in the excepted service, unless such positions are placed in a schedule in the excepted service as in effect on September 30, 2020. The bill also prohibits positions in the excepted service from being placed in any schedule other than the aforementioned schedules. Additionally, agencies may not (1) transfer occupied positions from the competitive or excepted service into Schedule C without the consent of the Office of Personnel Management, or (2) transfer employees in the excepted service to another schedule or transfer employees in the competitive service to the excepted service without employee consent.

HR 1269, the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act of 2025, expands benefits for public safety officers (like police and firefighters) who develop certain cancers linked to their work. It adds 22 specific cancers - including lung, mesothelioma, and breast cancer - to the list of conditions presumed to be "exposure-related" and sustained in the line of duty. This presumption applies if the officer served at least 5 years, was diagnosed with the cancer within 15 years after last active duty, and the cancer directly caused death or permanent disability. The bill also establishes a process for adding new cancers every 3 years based on medical evidence from agencies like NIOSH, and allows claims to be filed within 3 years of the law's enactment.

Stop the Wait Act of 2025 This bill phases out the initial waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits and eliminates the waiting period for certain disabled individuals to become eligible for Medicare.  Under current law, individuals generally must wait five months after the onset of disability to begin receiving SSDI benefits. The bill would gradually reduce this waiting period before eliminating it entirely in the year 2030.  Further, the bill would eliminate the 24-month waiting period for certain disabled workers and other individuals to become eligible for Medicare. Under current law, individuals under the age of 65 may generally enroll in Medicare after they have been eligible for SSDI or Social Security child’s, widow’s, or widower’s benefits by reason of disability for 24 months. The bill would eliminate this waiting period for individuals for whom the annual cost of certain medical insurance would exceed a specified percentage of their household income (i.e., those who cannot afford minimum essential coverage). Medicare eligibility for these individuals must be available retroactively to the first month that an individual qualified for SSDI or Social Security child’s, widow’s, or widower’s benefits by reason of disability.

HR 1423, the Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2025, expands GI Bill benefits to National Guard members who serve on full-time National Guard duty or active duty under Title 32. It removes previous exclusions by counting this service toward eligibility for Post-9/11 educational benefits, just like active-duty service. The change applies retroactively to service performed since September 11, 2001, allowing affected veterans to access benefits they were previously denied. This policy adjustment directly affects National Guard members who completed qualifying full-time duty since 2001.

The Women's Retirement Protection Act aims to improve retirement security for women by requiring spousal consent for certain retirement plan distributions and beneficiary changes in defined contribution plans (like 401(k)s). It directly affects women participating in workplace retirement plans, particularly those in defined contribution plans who face greater financial vulnerability during divorce. Key provisions include adding "spousal consent requirements" to retirement plans to prevent unilateral decisions about retirement savings, creating grants for financial literacy programs for women, and providing assistance for low-income women and domestic violence survivors in obtaining retirement benefits through divorce. The bill addresses documented disparities where women's average Social Security benefit is $1,638 monthly compared to men's $2,020, and women aged 80+ have a higher poverty rate than men in the same age group.

This bill establishes special base pay rates for wildland firefighters employed by the Forest Service or Department of the Interior, increasing their base pay by specific percentages (from 1.5% to 42%) based on their grade. It creates "incident response premium pay" at 450% of hourly rate for firefighters deployed to respond to qualifying wildfire incidents, with a yearly maximum of $9,000. The bill also provides for paid rest and recuperation leave following wildfire incident response. These provisions replace temporary pay increases that were previously authorized under other legislation and directly affect wildland firefighters who perform duties related to wildland fires.

HR 2001 increases annual funding for a grant program supporting dental workforce development from $13.9 million to $15 million, extending the program through fiscal years 2026-2030 (previously 2019-2023) under the Public Health Service Act. The bill modifies existing funding levels to maintain support for addressing dental workforce shortages, with funds remaining available until expended. This change directly affects the operation of the grant program and its ability to fund dental workforce initiatives.

The Family Building FEHB Fairness Act (HR 1670) adds fertility treatment benefits to the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. It directly affects federal employees and their families who use FEHB coverage, expanding what medical services the program pays for. Key provisions define "fertility treatment" to include services like in vitro fertilization (IVF), embryo preservation, genetic testing of embryos, artificial insemination, and related medications. The bill amends existing law to require FEHB plans to cover these services starting one year after the bill becomes law. This change ensures federal employees have access to fertility care as part of their health benefits package.

HR 2514, the Trucker Bathroom Access Act, requires businesses like warehouses, distribution centers, and shipping facilities (but not small restaurants under 800 sq ft) to allow commercial truck drivers access to their restrooms when delivering goods or waiting to load cargo. It also mandates that port terminals provide sufficient restrooms for drayage truck operators (drivers of large trucks moving cargo at ports) in safe, accessible areas, including parking spots for vehicle access. The bill does not require businesses to make physical restroom changes and exempts locations where access would create health, safety, or security risks. It defines "covered drivers" as those operating commercial vehicles regulated by the Department of Transportation and "covered restrooms" as those safely accessible to drivers. This law directly affects truck drivers and the businesses they interact with during deliveries or port operations.