Sen. Tommy Tuberville

Raising Expectations with Child Opportunity Vouchers for Educational Recovery Act or the RECOVER Act This bill directs local educational agencies to use certain federal COVID-19 relief funds to address student learning loss by distributing direct financial assistance (i.e., Child Opportunity Scholarships) to the parent or guardian of an eligible student for certain qualified educational expenses (e.g., educational materials, tutoring, or private school tuition). Eligible student refers to a child who is a member of a household with an income that is not more than 300% of the federal poverty level.

Securing America's Land from Foreign Interference Act This bill requires the President to take actions as necessary to prohibit members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) (or foreign individuals or entities acting on behalf of the CCP) from purchasing real estate located in the United States. The bill also modifies an existing civil penalty for failing to satisfy a reporting requirement relating to a foreign individual or entity that acquires or transfers an interest in U.S. agricultural land. Under this bill, the civil penalty for failing to report the required information to the Department of Agriculture must be at least 10% of the fair market value of the relevant interest in agricultural land.

Recovering America’s Wildlife Act of 2022 This bill provides financial and technical assistance to states, territories, and the District of Columbia for the purposes of (1) recovering species listed as a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act or under state law, or (2) avoiding the need to list species under such laws. For example, the bill establishes the Endangered Species Recovery and Habitat Conservation Legacy Fund. A portion of the fund must be used to establish an Endangered Species Recovery Grant Program. It also provides funding for (1) the conservation or restoration of wildlife and plant species of greatest conservation need; (2) the wildlife conservation strategies of states, territories, or the District of Columbia; and (3) wildlife conservation education and recreation projects. The Department of the Interior must use a portion of the funding for a grant program. The grants must be used for innovative recovery efforts for species of greatest conservation need, species listed as endangered or threatened species, or the habitats of such species. In addition, the bill requires certain revenues generated from fees and penalties for violations of environmental requirements to be used as a source for the funding.

Maddy summarySRES 729 is a Senate resolution designating the week beginning November 7, 2022, as "National Pregnancy Center Week." It recognizes community-supported pregnancy centers across the United States for providing services like counseling, pregnancy testing, ultrasounds, and material resources to individuals facing pregnancy decisions. The resolution does not create new laws or allocate funds but formally acknowledges these centers' work through symbolic recognition. It highlights their role in serving over 2 million people annually, though the resolution itself has no binding policy effect.

Maximize Americans' Retirement Security Act This bill revises the fiduciary duties for a retirement or employee benefit plan that is regulated under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. The bill generally requires a fiduciary to select and maintain investments for a plan based solely on pecuniary factors. Under the bill, a pecuniary factor is a factor that is expected to have a material effect on the risk or return of an investment based on appropriate investment horizons that are consistent with the plan's investment objectives and funding policy. A fiduciary may only use nonpecuniary factors if the fiduciary is unable to distinguish between investment alternatives on the basis of pecuniary factors alone. In such a case, the fiduciary must provide specified documentation to the plan's participants and beneficiaries, including an explanation of how the chosen nonpecuniary factors are consistent with their interests.

This resolution recognizes the Senate's observation of Countering International Parental Child Abduction Month in April 2022. It also urges the United States to lead in raising awareness about the devastating impact of international parental child abduction.

Benjamin Berell Ferencz Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill provides for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Benjamin Berell Ferencz in recognition of his service to the United States and the international community during the post-World War II Nuremberg trials and his lifelong advocacy for international criminal justice and the rule of law.

Restoring Benefits to Defrauded Veterans Act of 2022 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to pay certain reissued benefits (i.e., benefits that were misused by a fiduciary) to a beneficiary's estate in situations where a beneficiary predeceases a payment. The VA must pay such benefits to an individual or entity in the following order: the estate of the beneficiary, a successor fiduciary serving the beneficiary when the beneficiary died, or the next inheritor determined by a court of competent jurisdiction.

This resolution designates June 2022 as National Post-Traumatic Stress Awareness Month and June 27, 2022, as National Post-Traumatic Stress Awareness Day. The resolution supports (1) the education of members of the Armed Forces, veterans, their families, and the public about post-traumatic stress; and (2) efforts by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to foster cultural change around the issue of post-traumatic stress. The resolution also encourages the leadership of the Armed Forces to support treatment of members of the Armed Forces who suffer from post-traumatic stress.

Educational Choice for Children Act This bill allows individuals and corporations a new tax credit after 2022 for charitable contributions to tax-exempt organizations that provide scholarships to elementary and secondary school students. Such students must be members of a household with incomes not greater 300% of the area median gross income and be eligible to enroll in a public elementary or secondary school. The bill excludes from the gross income of taxpayer dependents any scholarship amount for the elementary or secondary education expenses of eligible students. It also prohibits governmental control over scholarship granting organizations.