This resolution calls on the President to take executive action to cancel up to $50,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers. Further, it encourages the President to (1) ensure that borrowers have no tax liability from the debt cancellation, (2) ensure that the debt cancellation helps close racial wealth gaps, and (3) pause student loan payments and interest accumulation on federal student loans for the duration of the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic.
This resolution supports the designation of Career and Technical Education Month to celebrate career and technical education across the United States.
This resolution supports the naming of new or undedicated Department of Veterans Affairs facilities after women veterans and minority veterans to reflect the diversity of all who have served in the Armed Forces.
Small Business Access to Capital Act of 2021 This bill reauthorizes for an additional eight years the State Small Business Credit Initiative. The initative assists participating states in providing collateral financial support to, and other innovative credit access and guarantee initiatives for, small businesses and manufacturers. The bill prescribes allocations of federal funds to participating states, and it authorizes the Department of the Treasury to award up to $5 billion in two tranches (portions), according to specified criteria, for participating states to (1) make federal contributions to an approved state program, or (2) use as collateral for a qualifying loan or swap funding facility.
Tracking COVID-19 Variants Act This bill expands viral genomic sequencing, disease surveillance, and other public health research activities. Specifically, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) must issue guidance on the sequencing of the virus that causes COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Additionally, the CDC must establish a program to strengthen genomic sequencing, analytics, and disease surveillance activities. As part of this program, the CDC must provide grants and technical assistance to health departments to build their capacity to carry out such activities. Furthermore, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) must carry out a demonstration program to expand an existing program that links different federal data sets for statistical public health research, including research on food insecurity, housing instability, and other social determinants of health. In particular, the program must support linkages with the National Death Index, a database of death records maintained by the NCHS.
Worker Health Coverage Protection Act This bill provides health insurance premium assistance to individuals who become unemployed or are furloughed during the period beginning on March 1, 2020, and ending on September 30, 2021. Specifically, the bill treats premiums as paid for individuals who (1) are terminated from employment and elect to continue insurance coverage through the COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) program during such period, or (2) receive more than a 30% reduction in work hours during such period but remain eligible for coverage under a group health plan. The bill also specifies requirements for individuals changing, or enrolling in, health plans under the program. Additionally, the bill requires employers to provide eligible individuals specified written notice about this health insurance premium assistance, including, among other information, available health plan enrollment options and the date that such assistance expires. The Department of the Treasury must reimburse employers, group health plans, and insurance issuers through a payroll tax credit or refund for unpaid premiums that were treated as paid under the program. Premium assistance is not considered income for federal income tax purposes or for determining eligibility for federal or state benefits or assistance.
Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act or the FAMILY Act This bill entitles every employee to a family and medical leave insurance (FMLI) monthly benefit payment of two-thirds of the employee's regular pay, limited to a maximum of $4,000, for not more than 60 days of qualified caregiving. The bill establishes the Office of Paid Family and Medical Leave within the Social Security Administration to administer the FMLI program. An FMLI benefit payment must be coordinated with any periodic benefits received under a state or local temporary disability insurance or family leave program. The bill imposes a tax on employers, employees, and self-employed individuals to fund FMLI benefits. It also establishes the Federal Family and Medical Leave Insurance Trust Fund to hold tax revenues.
States Achieve Medicaid Expansion Act of 2021 or the SAME Act of 2021 This bill provides an enhanced federal matching rate to every state that expands Medicaid coverage for individuals who are newly eligible under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, regardless of when such expansion takes place. Under current law, the enhanced Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) is equivalent to 100% in 2014 through 2016, 95% in 2017, 94% in 2018, 93% in 2019, and 90% thereafter. The bill retains this enhanced FMAP, but bases it on a term of years rather than on specific dates. The bill applies retroactively.
Safe and Affordable Drugs from Canada Act of 2021 This bill requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to allow for the personal importation of prescription drugs from Canada in certain instances. Such a drug must (1) be purchased from an approved Canadian pharmacy and dispensed by a pharmacist licensed in Canada; (2) be purchased by an individual for personal use only and in quantities not to exceed a 90-day supply; (3) be filled using a valid prescription from a physician licensed in a U.S. state; and (4) have the same active ingredients, route of administration, dosage form, and strength as an FDA-approved drug. Certain types of drugs may not be imported under this program, such as controlled substances, biological products, or intravenously injected drugs. An approved pharmacy under this program must be located and licensed in Canada and meet additional requirements, such as participation in ongoing and comprehensive quality assurance programs. The FDA shall publish a list of approved Canadian pharmacies on a website.
Legacy IRA Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to expand the tax exclusion for distributions from individual retirement accounts (IRAs) for charitable purposes. The bill increases from $100,000 to $400,000 the annual limit on the aggregate amount of distributions for charitable purposes that may be excluded from the gross income of a taxpayer. The bill permits tax-free distributions from IRAs to a split-interest entity for four years after the enactment of this bill. A split-interest entity is exclusively funded by charitable distributions and includes: a charitable remainder annuity trust, a charitable remainder unitrust, or a charitable gift annuity. A charitable gift annuity must commence fixed payments of at least 5% no later than one year from the date of funding. A distribution to a split-interest entity may only be treated as a qualified charitable distribution if: (1) no person holds an income interest in the entity other than the individual for whose benefit the account is maintained, the spouse of such individual, or both; and (2) the income interest in the entity is nonassignable.
United States-Israel PTSD Collaborative Research Act This bill establishes a grant program for collaborative efforts between the United States and Israel to advance research on post-traumatic stress disorders. The Department of Defense, in coordination with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of State, shall award grants to eligible academic institutions or nonprofit entities in the United States. Work shall be conducted by the eligible entity and an entity in Israel under a joint research agreement.
Real Economic Support That Acknowledges Unique Restaurant Assistance Needed To Survive Act of 2021 or the RESTAURANTS Act of 2021 This bill temporarily establishes and provides funding for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, from which the Department of the Treasury shall make grants to eligible food and beverage purveyors to cover specified costs such as payroll, operational expenses, and paid sick leave. For the grant program's initial period, Treasury must (1) prioritize awarding grants to marginalized and underrepresented communities, and (2) only award grants to eligible food and beverage purveyors with annual revenues of less than $1.5 million in 2019. For tax purposes, grant amounts are excluded from the recipient's gross income. An entity that received a loan under the Paycheck Protection Program established to support small businesses in response to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) may not apply for or use a restaurant revitalization grant for the same expenses for which the entity received the paycheck protection loan. Further, a grant applicant may request an additional amount to cover the cost of providing 10 days of paid sick leave to its employees. Treasury must report a list of grant recipients with the amount each recipient received, as well as demographics and other specified information.
