Rep. Andy Barr

Maddy summaryHR 6552, the Bank-Fintech Partnership Enhancement Act, mandates a study by the Federal Reserve, Comptroller of the Currency, and FDIC into how partnerships between banks and financial technology companies support new banking formations and community bank health. The study must examine specific benefits like reduced time-to-market for products, lower compliance costs, and improved technological capabilities, then identify potential legal or regulatory changes to foster such partnerships. The regulators must submit a report to Congress within six months of the bill's enactment. This is a procedural bill focused on research, not direct policy changes affecting businesses or consumers.

Maddy summaryThe TIER Act of 2025 adjusts financial regulatory thresholds to account for economic growth. It raises key asset thresholds for large banks and financial institutions - from $250 billion to $370 billion in most cases (e.g., in the Federal Reserve Act and Financial Stability Act). The bill also establishes a new mechanism requiring periodic, automatic adjustments to these thresholds every five years based on U.S. GDP growth, starting in 2031. These changes directly affect large bank holding companies and financial firms subject to federal oversight under current regulations. The adjustments aim to keep regulatory standards aligned with the evolving size of the economy.

Respect State Housing Laws Act This bill eliminates a provision that requires a 30-day notice period before a landlord may begin eviction proceedings against a tenant in federally assisted or federally backed housing.

Maddy summaryThe RESCUE Act of 2025 amends federal permitting rules to streamline approvals for projects extracting minerals or carbon from specific waste sources. It directly affects companies and projects working with acid mine drainage, coal waste, mine tailings, or coal byproducts to recover rare earth elements, minerals under the 1872 Mining Law, or microfine carbon. The key provision adds these activities to the existing FAST Act permit process, removing barriers for processing materials from mining waste streams. This change aims to expedite development of domestic rare earth and carbon resources without altering environmental standards. The bill focuses on clarifying permit eligibility rather than creating new regulations.

Maddy summaryHR 7644 modernizes the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to strengthen U.S. economic security amid global competition. It creates a Critical Minerals Task Force to assess supply chain vulnerabilities and identify countries for projects that diversify mineral sourcing, and adds a "Great Power Competition Factsheet" to evaluate partner countries' exposure to strategic rivals like China and Russia. The bill requires early engagement with U.S. private sector entities in project design to mobilize private capital and mandates that MCC compacts be implemented within 5 years. These changes aim to align MCC’s existing aid model - focused on governance, economic freedom, and poverty reduction - with U.S. strategic priorities without altering its core development mission.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs U.S. agencies to support Iranian people's access to uncensored information and hold Iranian officials accountable for human rights abuses. It requires the State Department and FCC to report on technologies (like satellite networks and mesh systems) that could bypass internet restrictions in Iran, and authorizes $2 million annually to develop such tools. The bill also establishes a new "Iran Kleptocracy Initiative" at FinCEN to track corruption, freeze assets of Iranian regime officials and state-owned businesses, and coordinate with international partners. These measures apply to U.S. policy toward Iran but do not alter Iran's domestic laws; they focus on U.S. sanctions, technology development, and anti-corruption efforts targeting the Iranian regime.

Maddy summaryHR 7588, the *Eliminating Fraud in the CFPB’s Complaint Database Act*, requires consumers to verify complaint details under penalty of perjury before submitting complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). It mandates that complaints must be filed by the consumer directly or by an authorized representative with proof of authorization, and that consumers must notify the business involved at least 60 days prior to filing with the CFPB. Covered businesses (like banks) can close duplicate, frivolous, or unauthorized complaints without further action and must report closures to the CFPB. The bill also ensures confidentiality for narrative complaint content, allowing only aggregated, non-identifiable data to be published publicly.

Protection of Women in Olympic and Amateur Sports Act This bill requires certified national governing bodies (NGBs) of amateur sports (e.g., USA Gymnastics) to prohibit a person whose sex is male from participating in an amateur athletic competition that is designated for females, women, or girls. Under the bill, male  means an individual who has, had, will have—or would have, but for a developmental or genetic anomaly or historical accident—the reproductive system that at some point produces, transports, and utilizes sperm for fertilization.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes the United States-Israel Defense Technology Cooperation Initiative to accelerate joint development and integration of defense technologies between the two countries. It directs the U.S. Secretary of Defense, with Israel’s agreement, to identify Israeli-origin technologies for rapid adoption into U.S. military systems, focusing on areas like counter-drone systems, missile defense (including "Golden Dome for America"), AI, cyber defense, and directed energy. The initiative requires annual congressional reporting on progress, partnerships with industry, and technology transitions, while authorizing $150 million annually for fiscal years 2027-2029. It aims to strengthen bilateral defense innovation and streamline the use of Israeli technologies within U.S. military programs.

Maddy summaryThe Contract Our Veterans Act of 2026 establishes new federal contracting preferences for small businesses owned and controlled by veterans. It allows agencies to award contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold without competition to qualified veteran-owned businesses if they meet performance, pricing, and value criteria, and creates restricted competitions exclusively for these businesses. The bill sets a mandatory governmentwide goal of at least 5% of all federal prime and subcontract awards going to veteran-owned small businesses each fiscal year. It also amends reporting requirements to track these contracts separately across agencies, including through sole-source awards and restricted competitions. This directly affects veteran-owned small businesses seeking federal contracts and federal agencies responsible for procurement.