Rep. Janice D. Schakowsky

Maddy summaryThe Workers POWER Act (HR 6634) strengthens federal labor enforcement by expanding staffing and resources for the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). It creates new paid student positions (5 in Washington, DC, plus 2 per regional office), establishes child labor fellowships (5 per agency), and increases student loan repayment benefits for eligible employees. The bill also authorizes performance-based bonuses, retention incentives, and $250 million annually in grants to states to improve their labor enforcement capacity. These changes directly affect Department of Labor enforcement staff and state/local labor agencies working to address wage theft, child labor, and workplace safety violations.

Maddy summaryThe Elizabeth Dole Home Care Act of 2023 increases the expenditure cap for home- and community-based care for veterans from 65% to 100% of costs, with exceptions for certain cases based on clinical need and geographic factors. It establishes new programs including Veteran-Directed Care, which allows veterans to select and manage their own in-home care services, and Home-Based Primary Care, which provides in-home health care overseen by VA providers. The bill requires improved coordination with existing programs like the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) and mandates a centralized website with information about available services. It specifically targets veterans who would otherwise require nursing home care or face increased risk of hospitalization, and includes provisions to address home health aide shortages through pilot programs.

Maddy summaryThis bill makes the Department of Education's 2023 SAVE Plan repayment regulations permanent by incorporating them directly into federal law. It directly affects federal student loan borrowers who use the SAVE Plan, which sets income-driven repayment terms. The key mechanism is transferring the specific rules from the 2023 regulations (published in the Federal Register) into Title 34 of the U.S. Code, ensuring those terms remain in effect without needing future regulatory updates. This change provides stability for borrowers and eliminates the need for the Department to reissue the same rules as new regulations.

Generating Relief for Academic Debt Using Assisted Tax Efficiency Act or the GRADUATE Act This bill expands the tax deduction for student loan interest to include payments toward principal. It also increases the maximum allowable amount of the deduction.

Maddy summaryHR 6592, the Fight Book Bans Act, provides federal grants to reimburse public school districts for legal costs when they choose to keep instructional or library materials after parental objections. It directly affects school districts (covered local educational agencies) that select materials for students and handle challenges to their removal. The bill authorizes up to $100,000 per case in grants to cover attorney fees and court costs, provided the district didn’t remove the materials and wasn’t reimbursed by the state. Funding of $15 million is authorized for fiscal years 2024-2028. The grants are strictly for legal challenges to decisions not to remove materials, not for the content of the materials themselves.

Maddy summaryHR 6381, the Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2023, helps noncitizen veterans and service members who face deportation by creating a pathway to legal permanent residency in the U.S. It requires the government to reopen removal cases for eligible veterans, adjust their status to lawful permanent residents if they served honorably without certain serious criminal convictions (like crimes of violence), and prohibit deportation except for such crimes. The bill also ensures these individuals can access military and veterans benefits they lost due to removal proceedings and allows them to apply for naturalization through military service. It mandates that immigration officials identify service members/veterans early in proceedings and track their cases to prevent unjust removal.

Maddy summaryHRES 907 is a non-binding House resolution condemning rising antisemitism in the U.S., citing increased hate crimes (25% rise in 2022 per FBI data) and campus incidents (41% increase from 2021-2022 per ADL). It calls on all Americans, including campus leaders and government agencies, to combat antisemitism and urges implementation of the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism. The resolution specifically requests increased funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program to strengthen safety protections for Jewish communities. It directly affects Jewish Americans, campus communities, and government agencies responsible for hate crime prevention and community safety.

Maddy summaryHR 6568, the STOP Act of 2023, prohibits secondary ticket sellers from advertising or selling event tickets they do not physically possess (e.g., "speculative ticketing"). It requires these sellers to clearly separate ticket services from actual tickets, provide full refunds if events are canceled (except for unforeseeable events like natural disasters), and disclose refund policies upfront. The bill also bans deceptive website practices, such as falsely claiming affiliation with venues or using misleading domain names. These rules directly affect secondary market platforms like StubHub and Ticketmaster resale services, aiming to protect consumers from scams and unclear fees.

Maddy summaryHRES 874 is a symbolic resolution expressing the House's support for designating November as "Prematurity Awareness Month." It does not create new laws or alter funding but urges the public, organizations, and communities to observe the month through events, promote awareness, and support preterm birth prevention programs. The resolution highlights statistics on preterm births (383,000 babies born preterm in 2021) and health disparities, but its sole action is endorsing the awareness designation. As a non-binding resolution, it has no direct impact on policy or affected individuals beyond raising public visibility.

Billionaire Minimum Income Tax Act This bill imposes a minimum tax on individual taxpayers whose net worth for the taxable year exceeds $100 million. The tax is equal to 25% of the sum of a taxpayer's taxable income, plus net unrealized gains for the taxable year. The tax may not exceed 40% of the amount by which the taxpayer's net worth exceeds $100 million.