Rep. Bradley Scott Schneider

Maddy summaryHR 1788, the "Goldie’s Act," strengthens USDA enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act. It requires annual inspections of all regulated animal businesses (like dealers, research facilities, and exhibitors) and mandates immediate, humane confiscation of animals suffering due to violations, while prohibiting owners from destroying animals during this process. The bill increases civil penalties to $10,000 per violation, requires hearing panels including veterinarians, and mandates that penalties consider business size and violation severity. It also requires USDA to share violation records with local animal control within 24 hours.

Maddy summaryThe Military Family Nutrition Act of 2023 amends the Food and Nutrition Act to exclude a military member's basic housing allowance (BAH) from income calculations when determining eligibility for nutrition assistance programs like SNAP. This change directly affects military families who receive BAH as part of their housing benefit but currently have that allowance counted as income, potentially disqualifying them from food assistance. The key provision adds a specific exclusion for BAH paid to or on behalf of uniformed service members under Title 37, U.S. Code. As a result, military families will have their housing costs subtracted from their income for program eligibility, making it easier for them to qualify for nutrition support.

Maddy summaryHR 2802, the Improving Mental Health Access for Students Act, requires colleges and universities to include suicide prevention contact information on student identification cards. Specifically, institutions must list the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, Crisis Text Line, and their campus mental health center on new ID cards. Schools that don't issue ID cards must post this information on their websites instead. The requirement takes effect one year after the bill's enactment.

Maddy summaryThe Armenian Genocide Education Act (HR 2803) establishes a Library of Congress program to support U.S. schools in teaching about the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923. The program will develop educational resources, provide teacher training, and maintain an online resource center to help schools incorporate accurate historical information into curricula. It prioritizes schools without existing Armenian Genocide education programs, with $2 million authorized annually for five years. The Librarian of Congress will report yearly on the program’s activities to Congress.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes national goals for reducing aviation greenhouse gas emissions (35% reduction by 2035, net zero by 2050) and defines sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as fuel meeting specific environmental and technical standards. It creates a $200 million annual grant program (2024-2028) to support U.S. production, transportation, and storage of SAF, while establishing a low carbon fuel standard requiring progressively lower carbon intensity in aviation fuels. The Department of Defense must purchase at least 10% sustainable aviation fuel by 2025 if competitively priced and domestically produced. These provisions directly affect airlines, fuel producers, the Department of Defense, and other entities involved in aviation fuel production and consumption, with tax credits extended for SAF production through 2032.

Maddy summaryThis bill reauthorizes annual funding for teaching health centers that train doctors through graduate medical education programs. It sets specific funding levels from 2011 through 2034, gradually increasing over time (e.g., $582.7 million annually for 2033), with future years adjusted for inflation based on medical care costs. The funding directly supports community-based teaching hospitals and clinics that provide both patient care and physician training. Key provisions include fixed annual amounts for specific fiscal years and an inflation adjustment mechanism starting in 2034. This is a procedural funding measure affecting healthcare training institutions, not a new policy.

This resolution urges (1) the President to issue a proclamation recognizing Earth Day; and (2) governments and people to continue building upon the Paris Agreement and other efforts to ensure that future generations inherit a livable, sustainable, and ecologically rich planet.

Maddy summaryHR 2788, the AIM Act, permanently extends a tax provision allowing businesses to deduct certain depreciation, amortization, or depletion costs when calculating their business interest expense limits. This change directly affects businesses that calculate business interest deductions under the Internal Revenue Code. The bill removes the previous expiration date (for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2022), making the deduction rule permanent for all future taxable years. It does not alter the underlying tax rules but ensures the specific deduction method remains available indefinitely.

Maddy summaryHR 2785, the REEF Act, amends a 2020 law to change when certain payments from the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Account take effect. It retroactively applies changes to these payments as if they had been in place before the national emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic ended. This directly affects railroad workers who receive unemployment benefits through this account, ensuring they receive payments under the revised timing. The bill's key change is making the effective date of these payment rules apply retroactively from before the pandemic emergency period.

Contact Lens Prescription Verification Modernization Act This bill revises the requirements for the verification of prescriptions related to the purchase of contact lenses. Specifically, online sellers of prescription contact lenses must provide consumers with a method to transmit a digital copy of their prescriptions to such sellers. Online sellers also must encrypt protected health information they send by email. Additionally, the bill prohibits any seller of prescription contact lenses from using telephone calls with an artificial or prerecorded voice (i.e., robocalls) to verify a consumer's prescription.