Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse

Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act This bill allows expanded importation of eligible prescription drugs and addresses related issues. Current law allows the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to authorize the importation of certain eligible prescription drugs from Canada if HHS certifies to Congress that doing so would pose no additional risk to public health and safety and would result in significant cost savings for consumers. The bill removes this certification requirement and requires HHS to issue regulations that permit the importation of qualifying prescription drugs from Canada. After a certain amount of time, HHS may authorize importation from certain other countries if it determines that importation from Canada has resulted in cost savings for consumers and increased access to safe medication. The bill also expands the types of prescription drugs eligible for importation to include, for example, biologics such as insulin. Furthermore, the bill allows individuals to use an eligible licensed foreign pharmacy to fill a U.S.-issued prescription for a qualifying drug for personal use. Currently, an individual seeking to import a prescription drug generally must acquire a waiver from HHS. The bill imposes various requirements related to certification of foreign sellers, labeling of imported drugs, and supply chain security. The bill also (1) prohibits certain acts that discriminate against foreign sellers, such as charging higher prices to foreign sellers than to other sellers in the same country; and (2) imposes criminal penalties for online websites that sell counterfeit drugs or dispense drugs without a required prescription.

This bill retroactively eliminates the waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for certain individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Under current law, most SSDI recipients must wait five months after becoming disabled before their benefit payments may begin. The ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019 eliminated the waiting period for individuals with ALS but only covers individuals who apply for benefits after the date of enactment (December 20, 2020). As a result, individuals with ALS who applied for SSDI benefits in the five months before that date are still subject to the waiting period. This bill eliminates the waiting period for those individuals.

Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2021 This bill bars the Department of Agriculture from allowing the construction of roads, the reconstruction of roads, or logging in an inventoried roadless area where those activities are prohibited by the Roadless Rule (i.e., certain federal regulations relating to roadless area management).

GSA Resilient, Energy Efficient, and Net-Zero Building Jobs Act of 2021 or the GREEN Building Jobs Act of 2021 This bill establishes additional energy-efficiency requirements and programs for federal buildings, with a particular focus on reducing energy and water consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by FY2030 through partnerships with the private sector. Specifically, the bill requires the General Services Administration (GSA) to reduce the following for its facilities by FY2030: average building energy intensity (by at least 25%, relative to FY2018); average potable water consumption intensity (by 54%, relative to FY2007); industrial, landscaping, and agricultural water consumption (by 20%, relative to FY2018); and specified categories of greenhouse gas emissions (by at least 40%, relative to FY2018). The GSA must also implement retrofit projects that reduce the energy consumption of its facilities by at least 35%. Additionally, the GSA must develop plans that ensure that at least 50% of certain facilities offer zero-emission vehicle charging or fueling by December 31, 2030. The bill directs the GSA to work with the private sector through partnerships and financing opportunities in order to implement the bill's requirements. The bill also makes several other changes relating to federal building standards and related authorities, including (1) requiring lessors (i.e., property owners) to disclose data on the utility consumption of leased spaces; (2) requiring the GSA to assess and mitigate area flood risks, based on climate science; and (3) authorizing long-term contracts for federal purchases of renewable energy.

Carbon Removal, Efficient Agencies, Technology Expertise Act of 2021 or the CREATE Act of 2021 This bill establishes the Committee on Large-Scale Carbon Management within the National Science and Technology Council to plan and oversee efforts to (1) remove carbon dioxide from the air, ocean, and land; and (2) store such carbon. The committee must develop a strategic plan for federal research, development, and demonstration of technological carbon dioxide removal and storage. In addition, the committee must establish working groups to carry out a Carbon Removal Initiative that pursues such research, development, and demonstration across several federal agencies.

College Transparency Act This bill requires the National Center for Education Statistics to establish a secure and privacy-protected data system that contains information about postsecondary students. Specifically, the data system must evaluate student enrollment patterns, progression, completion, and postcollegiate outcomes, and higher education costs and financial aid; provide complete and customizable information for students and families making decisions about postsecondary education; reduce the requirements for reporting by institutions of higher education; and periodically match with other federal systems of data. The bill also establishes a postsecondary student data system advisory committee.

Protect DREAMer Confidentiality Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prevent disclosing information from applications to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), except to implement the program. Application information may be shared only to identify or prevent fraudulent claims, for particularized national security purposes relating to the applicant, or to investigate or prosecute a felony not related to immigration status. The bill also prohibits DHS from referring any individual with deferred action status to ICE, CBP, the Department of Justice, or any law enforcement agency.

Wall Street Tax Act of 2021 This bill imposes a 0.1% excise tax on certain purchases of stocks, bonds, and derivatives. The tax applies to the purchase of a security if (1) such purchase occurs on, or is subject to the rules of, a qualified board or exchange located in the United States; or (2) the purchaser or seller is a U.S. person. The tax applies to transactions with respect to a derivative if (1) the derivative is traded on, or is subject to the rules of, a qualified board or exchange located in the United States; or (2) any party with rights under the derivative is a U.S. person. The bill exempts from such tax (1) initial issues of securities; and (2) any note, bond, debenture, or other evidence of indebtedness which is traded on or is subject to the rules of, a qualified board or exchange located in the United States, and has a fixed maturity of not more than 100 days. The tax applies to transactions by a controlled foreign corporation and must be paid by its U.S. shareholders.

Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act of 2021 This bill allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to negotiate drug prices under the Medicare prescription drug benefit and to institute a price structure for the reimbursement of drugs covered under the benefit.

Monarch Action, Recovery, and Conservation of Habitat Act of 2021 or the MONARCH Act of 2021 This bill provides support for the conservation of western monarch butterflies (the monarch butterfly population that overwinters along the coast of California and breeds across California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah). Specifically, the bill establishes the Western Monarch Butterfly Rescue Fund. The Department of the Interior must use amounts in the fund to provide grants for the conservation of such butterflies. In addition, Interior must enter into an agreement with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to facilitate the implementation of the Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan, which was prepared by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.