This bill establishes a dedicated Transportation Security Trust Fund to ensure money collected from airline passenger security fees is used exclusively for aviation security purposes. The fund would support the Transportation Security Administration by paying salaries and benefits for its personnel, funding passenger and baggage screening operations, and purchasing security technology and infrastructure. Additionally, the legislation guarantees that aviation security operations can continue without interruption during government funding lapses, prioritizing frontline staff compensation and operational expenses before using remaining funds for technology upgrades.
This bill authorizes $150 million annually for fiscal years 2026 through 2031 to fund fundamental plant biology research at the National Science Foundation. The funds will be distributed through competitive grants to universities, nonprofit groups, private companies, and government agencies for research on plant and microbial biology relevant to agriculture, food, and biotechnology. The legislation also updates the legal definition of a nonprofit organization within the NSF's governing statute to align with current tax code requirements.
The Semi-Trailer Tax Parity Act modifies federal tax rules to allow floor plan financing interest rules to apply to semi-trailers and their chassis. This change directly affects businesses that finance semi-trailers for commercial use, such as trucking companies and logistics firms. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to include semi-trailers in the category of property eligible for specific interest deduction treatments previously reserved for other types of vehicles. This adjustment ensures that financing costs for semi-trailers are treated similarly to those for other commercial vehicles under existing tax provisions. The policy change takes effect for taxable years beginning after the bill is enacted.
This bill establishes a federal program to create at least two bioindustrial technology maturation facilities by 2030, which will serve as shared research and testing centers for developing biotechnology products that enhance energy security. These facilities will provide precommercial-scale testing, pilot production, and workforce training for companies and researchers working with biological systems to manufacture materials and products, with locations chosen to support diverse regional needs and supply chains. The legislation defines key terms related to biomanufacturing and waste streams, mandates collaboration with industry and academic partners, and authorizes $225.5 million in funding from 2026 through 2030 to support these efforts.
This bill, known as the Diabetes Foot Health Access and Modernization Act of 2026, makes two main changes to federal health insurance programs. First, it allows podiatric physicians to provide covered physician services under Medicaid, ensuring patients have access to specialized foot and ankle care. Second, it updates Medicare rules to clarify documentation requirements for diabetic shoes, specifying that a physician must confirm a patient has diabetes and related foot conditions before these shoes are covered. The changes take effect on January 1, 2026 for Medicaid podiatry services and January 1, 2028 for Medicare diabetic shoe documentation.
This bill directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology to create definitions, standards, and frameworks to ensure biological datasets from federally funded research are prepared for use in artificial intelligence models. It requires the NIST Director to establish clear criteria for what makes data "artificial intelligence-ready" and to consult with federal agencies, private industry, and academia during this process. The legislation also mandates regular testing of these standards to prevent undue burdens on researchers and requires federal agencies to update their data management policies accordingly.
This bill, known as the Fair Wages for Home Care Workers Act, would change federal labor rules to require overtime pay and minimum wage protections for certain babysitters. It specifically targets casual babysitting work that is irregular or intermittent, while excluding trained medical professionals like nurses and home health aides from these changes. The law would also allow babysitters to perform up to 20% of their work time on unrelated household tasks without losing their protected status. These amendments would apply to workers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 who provide custodial care for infants or children in private homes.
This bill directs the Joint Committee of Congress on the Library to commission and place a statue of Clarence Mitchell, Jr. in a permanent public location within the United States Capitol. The legislation authorizes the committee to enter into agreements with an artist or organization to create the statue and permits the Architect of the Capitol to handle related contracts on the committee's behalf. Funding is authorized to cover the costs of obtaining and installing the statue, with no specific time limit for spending the allocated funds. The bill honors Mitchell, Jr., a civil rights leader and former NAACP Washington Bureau director, by recognizing his contributions to civil rights legislation through a physical memorial in the Capitol.
This bill, known as the No Tax on Drill Pay Act, would exclude certain military compensation from federal income tax. It directly affects members of the U.S. military who receive pay for inactive-duty training, which includes weekend drills and other training activities outside of regular duty. The legislation amends the Internal Revenue Code to add inactive-duty training compensation to the list of qualified military benefits that are not subject to taxation. This change applies to any compensation received after the bill becomes law, meaning it would affect future training pay rather than past earnings.
This bill, known as the Raising Awareness for Youth Suicide Prevention Act, requires schools that receive federal education funding to include mental health and suicide prevention resources on student identification cards. The law mandates that these cards display contact information for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, the Crisis Text Line, and any state or local suicide prevention hotlines available in the area. Schools that do not issue physical ID cards must instead post this information prominently on their websites and include it on digital platforms students regularly use. The bill also directs the federal education secretary to run outreach campaigns to help students, parents, and school staff learn about these mental health resources.
This bill amends the Higher Education Act to recognize home-schooled students as high school graduates for federal student aid eligibility. It changes the definition in Section 484(d) to state that a student completing secondary education in a home school setting treated as a home or private school under state law is considered a high school graduate. This directly affects home-schooled students seeking federal financial aid for college. The key provision is a new definition that removes prior barriers to eligibility based on educational setting, aligning federal recognition with state-level home school classifications.
Living Donor Protection Act of 2025 This bill prohibits life insurance, disability insurance, and long-term insurance carriers from denying or otherwise restricting coverage for living organ donors. Specifically, carriers may not deny, cancel, vary premiums, or otherwise impose conditions on policies based on an individual's status as a living organ donor. The bill also expressly specifies that recovery from organ-donation surgery constitutes a serious health condition that entitles eligible employees to job-protected medical leave. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services must update educational materials on living organ donation to include information about the benefits and risks of living organ donation and the impact of donation on insurance access, particularly with respect to the bill's changes.
