Sen. Mike Lee

Maddy summaryS 887, the Basin Fund Preservation Act, requires the Interior and Energy Secretaries to create a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Glen Canyon Dam Work Group. This MOU must address how a 2024 decision about Glen Canyon Dam operations affects the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund, including impacts on infrastructure maintenance, hydropower production costs, and endangered species protections. The bill mandates the MOU include specific plans to manage these effects using existing hydropower contract data. It directly affects federal agencies managing the Fund and Glen Canyon Dam operations, without altering current laws or creating new obligations.

Maddy summaryThis bill, S 869 (Federal Reserve Board Abolition Act), would abolish the Federal Reserve Board and all Federal Reserve banks one year after enactment, repealing the Federal Reserve Act. It directs the Federal Reserve Chairman to manage employee payments and assets during a one-year winding-down period, after which the Office of Management and Budget would sell off assets and transfer net proceeds to the Treasury. The Secretary of the Treasury would assume all remaining Federal Reserve liabilities, including employee benefits, using funds from the asset sales. The bill directly affects the Federal Reserve System, its employees, and the Treasury Department, with no new policy mechanisms beyond the transition process.

This joint resolution nullifies the final rule issued by the National Park Service titled Glen Canyon National Recreation Area; Motor Vehicles  and published on January 13, 2025. The rule modified regulations concerning the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which is located in northern Arizona and southeastern Utah. For example, the rule limited the use of off-road vehicles, such as off-highway vehicles and all-terrain vehicles, in certain areas.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations to negotiate a supplemental agreement to the existing UN Headquarters Agreement. The goal is to prohibit the United Nations from hosting, leasing, or allowing the use of its U.S. facilities (specifically in New York City) for the International Criminal Court (ICC). The bill does not alter U.S. law or ICC jurisdiction but targets the ICC's current physical presence at UN headquarters. It would require the U.S. to seek this change within 30 days after the 80th UN General Assembly session begins.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends federal education law to prohibit federally funded athletic programs from allowing individuals assigned male at birth to participate in sports designated for women or girls. It defines "sex" for this purpose as biological sex at birth, based on reproductive anatomy and genetics. The law directly affects schools, colleges, and sports organizations receiving federal funding. Violations would constitute a breach of Title IX, requiring programs to exclude individuals whose sex is male from women's or girls' athletic teams.

Maddy summaryThis joint resolution (SJRES 12) seeks to block an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that established procedures for a "Waste Emissions Charge" affecting petroleum and natural gas systems. Specifically, it targets the EPA's November 2024 rule (89 Fed. Reg. 91094) which outlined compliance methods like netting and exemptions for emissions charges. If passed, the resolution would formally disapprove the rule under federal law (Chapter 8 of Title 5, U.S. Code), preventing it from taking effect. The bill directly affects the oil and gas industry by removing a specific regulatory framework for emissions reporting and fees. This is a procedural disapproval measure, not a new policy.

Maddy summaryS 792, the Government Spectrum Valuation Act, requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to estimate the market value of federally owned electromagnetic spectrum (covering frequencies from 3 kilohertz to 95 gigahertz) assigned to federal agencies. The NTIA must conduct these valuations in three phases over three years, based on what commercial wireless services would pay for similar spectrum, while considering federal mission needs. Federal agencies must then report these valuations in their annual budgets and financial statements. This bill directly affects all federal agencies using spectrum in the specified bands, aiming to provide transparency on the economic value of government-held spectrum resources.

Maddy summaryS 794 requires the Commerce Department's Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information to conduct a comprehensive audit of all federal spectrum (radio frequencies used for communications) assigned to government agencies within 18 months of the bill's enactment. The audit will inventory each spectrum band's specific use, purpose, geographic location, sharing status (with other agencies or private entities), and unused portions across all federal agencies. The resulting report, submitted to Congress, must detail these findings in plain terms, including any spectrum not actively used. This bill directly affects all federal agencies that operate with spectrum licenses but does not alter current spectrum allocation policies.

Maddy summaryS 807, the Guarding Readiness Resources Act, clarifies how the National Guard Bureau handles reimbursement funds from states and territories. It requires that money received from states (like California or Puerto Rico) for using military property must be returned to the specific account that covered the original costs or a similar account. These funds can only be used by the Department of Defense for repairing, maintaining, replacing, or similar upkeep of assets directly used by National Guard units during state duty. The bill directly affects the National Guard Bureau and state/territorial governments managing these reimbursements.

Maddy summaryThe Higher Education Reform and Opportunity Act (S 801) ends most federal student loans after September 30, 2028, replacing them with a simplified loan program featuring fixed interest rates, capped borrowing limits (e.g., $30,000 total for dependent undergraduate students), and standardized repayment terms (15 years for undergrads, 25 years for graduate students). The bill eliminates most student loan forgiveness options for loans issued on or after July 1, 2025, while requiring colleges to publish detailed transparency data about student outcomes, costs, and financial aid on their websites. It also establishes a penalty for institutions with high student loan default rates and allows states to develop their own accreditation systems for higher education programs, affecting students, colleges, and the broader higher education landscape.