Sen. Tammy Baldwin

Maddy summaryS 2054, the "Audit the Pentagon Act of 2023," requires the Department of Defense (DoD) to obtain an unqualified audit opinion on its full financial statements by 2024. If a DoD component (like a military branch or agency) fails to achieve this by the end of the calendar year for any fiscal year after 2024, it faces a 1% reduction in its next fiscal year's funding. The withheld funds are distributed proportionally across all programs within that component and then deposited into the Treasury's general fund for deficit reduction. This bill directly affects all DoD financial components by linking their budget authority to audit compliance.

Maddy summaryThe Freedom to Travel for Health Care Act of 2023 prohibits states from restricting or penalizing individuals for traveling to another state to access legal reproductive health care, including abortion services. It also bans discrimination against those who assist with such travel or provide the care, and overrides conflicting state laws that interfere with these rights. The bill allows individuals, healthcare providers, and the federal government to sue to enforce these protections in court, with remedies including injunctions and attorney fees. It directly affects patients seeking care across state lines, healthcare providers, and organizations facilitating such travel.

Maddy summaryThis bill repeals legal protections that previously shielded gun manufacturers from civil lawsuits related to gun violence. It allows gun violence victims to use firearm trace data from the ATF's database as evidence in civil court cases (including state, federal, and administrative proceedings). The key change makes gun trace information admissible and subject to discovery, meaning victims' legal teams can subpoena this data to prove how guns were obtained. This directly affects victims pursuing civil claims against gun manufacturers or dealers.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new dental benefits plan specifically for members of the Selected Reserve in the Ready Reserve (part-time military service members). It establishes a "no premium plan," meaning these service members will not pay any monthly fees for dental coverage. Additionally, they will pay no copayments for any dental care received under this new plan. The bill directly affects Selected Reserve members by providing them with expanded, cost-free dental benefits through the TRICARE system.

Maddy summaryS 2023, the *Seeds and Breeds for the Future Act*, establishes a $75 million annual funding set-aside to support the development of publicly available plant and animal varieties through federally funded breeding programs. It directly affects public research institutions (like land-grant universities), breeders developing non-proprietary varieties, and farmers who use these public cultivars or animal breeds. Key mechanisms include requiring that any public cultivar or animal breed developed with federal funds must be produced substantially in the U.S., prioritizing projects for climate resilience and Indigenous food systems, and creating a USDA coordinator to oversee research coordination and public reporting. The bill mandates annual reports to Congress tracking funded projects, commercialized varieties, and research gaps.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires group health plans (like employer-sponsored insurance) to provide equal cost-sharing (such as copays and deductibles) for oral anticancer medications as for intravenous or injected versions, provided a doctor deems the oral drug medically necessary. It prohibits plans from changing coverage to increase out-of-pocket costs for oral drugs or impose stricter limits on them compared to IV drugs. The requirement applies to FDA-approved anticancer drugs used to treat cancer, with plans still allowed to use prior authorization. The law takes effect for 2024 plan years.

Maddy summaryS 2024, the Reproductive Health Care Training Act of 2023, authorizes $25 million annually (2024-2028) to fund federal grants for health care training programs. The bill provides grants to eligible entities - such as accredited schools, academic health centers, and safety-net providers - in states where abortion care training is permitted, to expand clinical training for students and clinicians in abortion care. Key provisions require grantees to prioritize training focused on medically underserved communities, racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, Tribal populations, and telehealth integration, while also developing recruitment strategies for underrepresented groups. The program must supplement, not replace, existing federal health training funds and requires annual reporting on trainee numbers, partnerships, and program impact.

Maddy summaryThe Public Health Infrastructure Saves Lives Act (S 1995) provides federal grants to strengthen public health systems across the U.S. It directly affects state, territorial, and local health departments serving 500,000+ people, plus tribal health departments. Key mechanisms include: 50% of funds for formula-based grants to all states/territories (prioritizing population, disease burden, and poverty), 30% for competitive grants targeting departments with highest infrastructure needs, and a requirement for grantees to achieve accreditation by 2027. The bill allocates increasing annual funding - $750 million in 2024 rising to $4.5 billion annually by 2028 - with 3% reserved specifically for tribal health departments. It defines "core public health infrastructure" to include surveillance, emergency response, equity-focused services, and workforce capacity.

Maddy summaryThe Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2023 expands tax benefits for low-to-moderate income workers and families with children. It lowers the minimum age for the Earned Income Credit from 25 to 19 (with exceptions for students, former foster youth, and homeless youth), removes the age 65 maximum, and increases credit amounts and income thresholds. The bill also establishes a permanent system for monthly advance payments of the Child Tax Credit, with higher payments ($300 monthly) for children under age 6 compared to $250 for older children. It includes inflation adjustments to maintain the value of these credits over time and creates mechanisms for determining eligibility and recapturing payments in certain circumstances. The provisions apply to all states and U.S. territories, including Puerto Rico and American Samoa.

De Minimis Reciprocity Act of 2023 This bill makes various changes to  de minimis treatment of U.S. imports. (Current law allows for imports under a de minimis threshold to enter the United States free of tariffs and taxes with minimal inspection. In 2016, Congress raised this threshold from $200 to $800.) Specifically, the Department of the Treasury must prescribe regulations to establish dollar amount thresholds (which may not exceed $800) for de minimis entries. Treasury must establish a threshold for each country that takes into consideration (1) the dollar amount threshold of that country for de minimis entries from the United States; and (2) any related thresholds of that country, such as a threshold relating to a value-added tax on imports. The bill establishes in the Treasury the Re-shoring and Near-shoring Account. Amounts in this account must be available for facilitating the movement of manufacturing from China to the United States. Treasury must annually publish a list of countries that are not eligible for de minimis treatment. Treasury must establish the conditions for including a country on this list, with specified considerations. Further, the bill requires China and Russia to be included on this list. The bill requires that imports eligible for de minimis treatment must be transported into the United States by a contract carrier. The contract carrier must (1) collect additional data related to these imports, and (2) collect duties and taxes owed on these imports and remit those duties and taxes to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.