Teleabortion Prevention Act of 2021 This bill restricts the use of telehealth for chemical abortions (also known as medication abortions). Specifically, it requires a provider who dispenses or prescribes medication for a chemical abortion to physically examine the patient, be physically present at the location of the chemical abortion, and schedule a follow-up visit. The bill provides an exception for a chemical abortion that is necessary to save the life of a mother whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness, injury, or condition. The bill establishes criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to two years, or both—for a provider who does not comply with the requirements. A patient who undergoes a chemical abortion may not be prosecuted.
Afghanistan Accountability Act This bill requires the President to impose sanctions on certain foreign persons, such as Taliban officials, and requires reports related to Afghanistan. The President must impose asset- and visa-blocking sanctions on any foreign person who (1) is an official, agent, or instrumentality of the Taliban; (2) has acted to undermine democratic institutions or threaten the stability of Afghanistan; (3) has acted to limit or penalize freedom of expression in Afghanistan, particularly the freedom of expression of women; (4) has committed serious human rights abuses in Afghanistan; or (5) operates in the mining sector in Afghanistan. The sanctions also apply to certain immediate relatives of such persons and those who provide material support to such persons. The bill also requires reports to Congress on (1) the intelligence provided to the President and policymakers prior to and concerning the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, (2) whether the Taliban meets the criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization, and (3) human rights violations by the Taliban against individuals who supported U.S. efforts in Afghanistan.
Foreign Extortion Prevention Act This bill establishes a federal criminal offense involving bribery by foreign officials. Specifically, the bill makes it a crime for foreign officials to demand or accept anything of value personally or for another person or a nongovernmental entity to influence the performance of an official act or otherwise confer an improper advantage. The bill explicitly grants extraterritorial jurisdiction over the offense. A violation is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to 15 years, or both. Finally, the bill establishes a Victims of Kleptocracy Fund in the Treasury and directs fines and penalties for violations to be deposited into the fund for anti-corruption initiatives.
Revealing and Explaining Visa Exclusions for Accountability and Legitimacy Act or the REVEAL Act This bill authorizes the Department of State to publicly disclose the identity of an alien who has been denied admission into the United States because that alien's entry would pose potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences. The State Department may also reveal the grounds that it relied on to make such a determination. The President must annually report to Congress a list of individuals denied a visa on such foreign policy grounds and another list of the instances when the State Department chose to not publicly disclose the identity of such an individual.
Hong Kong People's Freedom and Choice Act of 2021 This bill provides for temporary protected status (TPS) for qualifying Hong Kong residents and contains other immigration-related provisions. Hong Kong shall be treated as a TPS-designated territory for 18 months starting from this bill's enactment. (Qualifying nationals of a TPS-designated territory or country may not be removed from the United States and shall have employment authorization while the designation is in effect.) Furthermore, Hong Kong shall be treated as separate from China for the purposes of various numerical limitations on immigrant visas. (In the treaty that transferred sovereignty of Hong Kong to China, China pledged that Hong Kong "will enjoy a high degree of autonomy.") The bill also establishes Priority Hong Kong Resident status for qualified individuals. To obtain such status, an individual must meet certain requirements, such as having resided in Hong Kong for at least ten years as of the day of this bill's enactment and not having citizenship in any jurisdiction other than China, Hong Kong, or Macau. For seeking refugee status or asylum, a Priority Hong Kong Resident may establish a well-founded fear of persecution based on various factors, such as fear based on the individual's significant role in certain protests against China's encroachment into Hong Kong's autonomy. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or the Department of State may provide special immigrant status to an eligible Priority Hong Kong Resident with a bachelor's or graduate degree if DHS determines that doing so would provide a significant benefit to the United States.
Residential Substance Use Disorder Treatment Act of 2021 This bill revises and reauthorizes through FY2026 grants for residential substance use disorder treatment programs at state and local correctional and detention facilities. Among the revisions, the bill replaces statutory references to substance abuse with substance use disorder , specifies that the term residential substance use disorder treatment program includes a medication-assisted treatment program, requires the chief medical officer or other staff overseeing a program to complete training on the science of addiction and the latest research and clinical guidance on treating substance use disorders in criminal justice settings, and allows people who are awaiting trial or in pretrial detention to participate in the programs.
Study To Observe and Prevent (STOP) Human Trafficking Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Justice, in coordination with the President's Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, to study and report on the prevalence and instances of human trafficking at adult entertainment clubs in the United States.
Second Amendment is Essential Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security to designate the business of importing, manufacturing, or dealing firearms, or importing or manufacturing ammunition, as a critical infrastructure sector. Additionally, the bill states that individuals who are employed by those entities are critical infrastructure workers. The term critical infrastructure means systems and assets, physical or virtual, so vital to the United States that the incapacity or destruction of such systems and assets would have a debilitating impact on security, national economic security, national public health and safety, or any combination of those matters.
Empowering Law Enforcement To Fight Sex Trafficking Demand Act of 2021 This bill allows grants under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program to be used for programs to combat human trafficking.
H-2B Returning Worker Exception Act of 2021 This bill modifies the H-2B (temporary nonagricultural workers) nonimmigrant visa program, including by exempting certain workers from an annual numerical limit on such visas and requiring civil penalties for program violations. Under this bill, if a worker seeking a H-2B visa has been counted toward the 66,000 annual cap on such visas in one of the three preceding fiscal years, that worker shall not be counted against the cap again. Furthermore, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must impose a civil monetary penalty on an employer for (1) failing to meet requirements related to an H-2B visa petition, or (2) making a willful misrepresentation of material fact in such a petition. DHS must also ensure the establishment of an electronic platform (1) for employers to submit and request approval of an H-2B petition, and (2) to act as a single point of access for applicants and the relevant government agencies. The Department of Labor must maintain a publicly available online database of all job orders by H-2B employers. Furthermore, Labor may take certain actions to enforce program requirements, such as imposing penalties and seeking injunctions. The bill provides statutory authority for the current practice of limiting the program to workers who are nationals of countries approved by DHS. DHS may make exceptions to this limitation in individual cases if it is in the U.S. interest to do so. DHS shall select approved countries based on various factors, such as the rate of overstay by H-2B visa holders from each country.
Foreign Corruption Accountability Act This bill temporarily authorizes the President to impose visa-blocking sanctions against any foreign person that engages in public corruption activities (e.g., soliciting or accepting bribes or engaging in extortion) against the United States. The President may terminate the sanctions by making a determination that the person (1) is no longer engaged in (or has taken significant verifiable steps to cease) the sanctionable conduct, or (2) will not knowingly engage in sanctionable conduct in the future. In addition, the President may also terminate the sanctions if it is in U.S. national security interests. The President must notify Congress at least 15 days before terminating the sanctions. The President must annually report to Congress on the imposition and termination of sanctions on foreign persons for engaging in public corruption. The authority to impose the sanctions terminates six years after this bill's enactment.
Justice for Victims of Kleptocracy Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Justice to publish and regularly update its website with an accounting of property that is forfeited to the United States as a result of foreign government corruption. It also expresses the sense of Congress that recovered assets shall be returned for the benefit of the people harmed by the corruption.
