Sen. Cory A. Booker

Maddy summaryThis bill would make several administrative changes to the Social Security Administration, including exempting it from the jurisdiction of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and certain executive orders, restricting political appointees from accessing beneficiary data systems, and preventing closure of field offices while requiring maintenance of staff levels. It also creates new offices within the SSA for civil rights, transformation, and analytics, and provides additional funding for administrative costs and customer experience improvements. These provisions would directly affect how the SSA manages its operations, protects beneficiary data, and delivers services to beneficiaries. The bill's title is misleading as it does not address billionaires or their relationship with Social Security.

Maddy summaryThis bill expands eligibility for family and medical leave under the FMLA for paraprofessionals and education support staff (ESP) in schools. It lowers the required work hours for eligibility from 1,250 hours per year to 60% of the expected monthly hours for their specific role (based on the previous school year’s schedule). Employers must document each employee’s expected monthly hours in a file for the Secretary’s review. The law specifically covers school staff providing services like clerical work, food services, custodial duties, or student health support, aligning with existing definitions from education law.

Maddy summaryThe Reducing Obesity in Youth Act of 2025 establishes a grant program to improve healthy eating and physical activity for children ages birth through 5 in childcare, Head Start, and early education settings. It authorizes $5 million annually (2026-2030) for competitive grants to nonprofits, schools, or consortia to train childcare providers, link programs to nutrition resources, and engage families - prioritizing diverse rural and urban communities. Grantees must address food insecurity and implement evidence-based approaches, with a national evaluator tracking outcomes and reporting results to Congress. The bill also allocates $1.7 million for monitoring state progress on obesity prevention policies and food security in these settings.

Maddy summaryThis resolution (SRES 376) symbolically recognizes suicide as a serious public health issue and designates September 8, 2025, as "988 Day" to honor the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. It does not create new programs but formally supports the national crisis line, which provides 24/7 mental health support via phone, chat, and text in over 150 languages. The resolution highlights the lifeline's role in connecting over 18 million people to crisis services since 2022 and cites statistics showing its effectiveness (98% of users found it helpful). It encourages public awareness of the service and broader efforts to expand mental health resources. The resolution directly affects the public by promoting recognition of the lifeline's importance in suicide prevention.

Maddy summaryThis bill adds striking workers to the eligibility pool for unemployment insurance. It amends federal tax law (Internal Revenue Code §3304(a)) to allow workers unable to work due to labor disputes - like strikes or lockouts - to receive benefits starting 14 days after the dispute begins, or at specific triggers such as when an employer hires permanent replacements. It also removes work availability requirements for these workers under the Social Security Act. The policy directly affects workers participating in labor disputes who lose income due to strikes or lockouts.

Maddy summaryThe Kidney Care Access Protection Act (S 2730) improves access to innovative treatments for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who require dialysis. The bill extends Medicare's Transitional Drug Add-On Payment Adjustment (TDAPA) period for new renal dialysis drugs approved after 2020 and creates a permanent post-TDAPA payment adjustment starting in 2026. It clarifies that Medicare payments will cover only drugs specifically for kidney disease treatment, not for related conditions like diabetes or heart disease. The legislation also requires Medicare Advantage plans to cover innovative kidney care therapies and adjusts payment calculations to better reflect actual costs for providers. These changes will take effect on January 1, 2026, for treatments provided after that date.

Maddy summaryThe Nationwide Right To Unionize Act (S 2729) would repeal a federal law provision allowing states to enact "right-to-work" laws, which typically prevent unions from requiring workers to pay dues as a condition of employment. By removing this state-level exception, the bill would make it illegal for any state to have right-to-work laws, meaning workers in unionized workplaces across all 50 states could be required to pay union dues if their union and employer agree. This directly affects workers, unions, and employers in every state, particularly in the 27 states currently with right-to-work laws. The bill does not change existing union security agreements but eliminates state-level alternatives that restrict union dues collection.

Maddy summaryThis bill adds a new tax deduction for student loan payments to the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008. It allows households to deduct monthly student loan payments made by any household member, covering both federal loans under the Higher Education Act and qualifying private loans. The deduction applies at household certification or recertification points for programs like SNAP, but only for payments not covered by third parties. It directly affects households with student loan debt seeking to reduce their taxable income through this specific tax provision. The change takes effect 180 days after the bill's enactment.

Maddy summaryThe FEED Act of 2025 amends the Food and Nutrition Act to exclude certain income earned by students under 21 participating in career and technical education (CTE) programs from household income calculations for food assistance programs like SNAP. It specifically exempts income from apprenticeships, internships, or work-based learning programs directly tied to their CTE enrollment, provided the student lives with a parent or under parental control. Households must verify the student’s enrollment in a qualifying CTE program and their age/relationship through documentation. This change directly affects low-income students in CTE programs who earn work-based income, making it easier for them to qualify for food assistance without losing benefits due to that income.

Maddy summaryS 2703, the Protecting Older Americans Act of 2025, prevents employers from requiring workers aged 40 or older to use pre-employment arbitration agreements or joint-action waivers in age discrimination cases. The bill makes such agreements invalid and unenforceable for disputes alleging age discrimination under federal, tribal, or state law. This means workers can choose to pursue age discrimination claims in court instead of binding arbitration. The law applies to all claims arising on or after its enactment date and ensures courts - not arbitrators - decide if the provision applies to specific agreements.