This bill terminates the Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families and addresses related issues. (The task force's duties include identifying children separated from their families on the U.S.-Mexico border between January 20, 2017, and January 20, 2021.) Specifically, the bill rescinds (1) the February 2, 2021, executive order that established the task force; and (2) all policy and legal decisions issued, settlement agreements (or consent decrees) entered into, and immigration benefits provided pursuant to that executive order. Furthermore, the Department of Justice (DOJ) may not enter into a settlement agreement pertaining to specified issues, such as the separation of family members by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, unless the Government Accountability Office certifies that the agreement complies with federal law and regulations concerning the collection and compromise of federal claims. The Office of Personnel Management must withhold the salaries of all federal employees who serve on the task force and deposit the amounts into an account for paying judgments against the United States. The withholding must continue until the deposited amount is equal to the amount paid to aliens under settlements entered into pursuant to the executive order. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) must publicly publish a report on the task force with information such as an accounting of the task force's incurred costs and all communications between task force members and nongovernmental entities. DOJ and the OMB must also publicly publish all settlement agreements entered into pursuant to the executive order.
Sponsored bills
Prohibiting Taxpayer Funded Settlements for Illegal Immigrants Act This bill prohibits using federal funds to make settlement payments to compensate any individuals for being separated from family members while detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection if the detention was (1) a result of the individual improperly entering (or attempting to improperly enter) the United States, and (2) in accordance with a Department of Justice memorandum that adopted a zero-tolerance policy for such improper entry into the United States.
Capital Gains Inflation Relief Act of 2021 This bill allows the adjusted basis of certain assets (including any common stock in a C corporation, any digital asset, and tangible property used in a trade or business) to be indexed for inflation for the purpose of determining the gain or loss of a taxpayer (other than a corporation) who has held the asset for more than three years. The bill sets forth rules for applying the inflation adjustment to short sales; regulated investment companies; real estate investment trusts; other pass-through entities, including partnerships, S corporations, and common trust funds; dispositions between related persons; and improvements to property or contributions of capital. The Internal Revenue Service may disallow an adjustment if any person transfers cash, debt, or any other property to another person for the principal purpose of securing or increasing the adjustment allowed by this bill.
Administrative False Claims Act of 2021 This bill modifies provisions regarding fraud committed against the federal government. Specifically, the bill raises the maximum amount of a fraud claim that may be handled administratively from $150,000 to $1 million, allows responsibilities in the administrative process assigned to the Attorney General or an Assistant Attorney General to be delegated to other Department of Justice employees, and allows the government to recoup costs for investigating and prosecuting these frauds.
This concurrent resolution celebrates the first anniversary of the signing of the Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women's Health and Strengthening the Family.
Maddy summaryThis non-binding Senate resolution supports parents' primary role in decisions about their children's education. It specifically opposes a Justice Department memo (issued October 4, 2021) directing federal resources to investigate parents protesting school policies, and demands that memo be rescinded. The resolution condemns efforts to restrict parental involvement in school decisions, such as limiting access to school meetings or curricula. It was introduced in response to controversies involving school board meetings in Loudoun County, Virginia, and a National School Boards Association letter comparing parent protests to domestic terrorism.
Helping Account for Rural Medical Outpatient Needs in Oklahoma Act or the HARMON Oklahoma Act This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to continue to allow Harmon Memorial Hospital in Hollis, Oklahoma, to retain its designation as a critical access hospital and to seek designation as a rural emergency hospital under Medicare after the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, as specified in a prior letter sent to the hospital. The bill also requires the CMS to issue final regulations implementing the newly created Medicare rural emergency hospital program by November 1, 2022.
Keeping Our COVID-19 Heroes Employed Act This bill exempts essential workers from COVID-19 vaccination requirements imposed by the federal government and contractors, public entities that received federal COVID-19 relief funds, and private entities that received any federal funds. An essential worker is an individual who was deemed to be essential or exempted from response measures during the COVID-19 pandemic by a state, tribe, or territory.
Upholding the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Law Act of 2021 This bill prohibits using federal funds to establish any diplomatic facility in Jerusalem other than the U.S. Embassy to Israel.
Prohibiting IRS Financial Surveillance Act This bill prohibits the Department of the Treasury from requiring a financial institution to report the balances, transactions, or the transfers into and out of a financial account. This prohibition does not apply to laws or regulations in effect on the date of enactment.