Humane Cosmetics Act of 2021 This bill generally prohibits animal testing in the evaluation of cosmetic products, and it prohibits the sale or transport of cosmetics developed using animal testing, subject to civil penalties. These prohibitions begin one year after enactment. The bill specifies exceptions to these prohibitions, including if such animal testing (1) is conducted outside the United States to comply with a foreign regulatory authority; (2) is pursuant to a specified finding that there are no nonanimal alternatives to test the safety of a potentially dangerous cosmetic product or ingredient; (3) is of a product or ingredient for a drug or device subject to regulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); or (4) is required for a noncosmetic purpose pursuant to a state, federal, or foreign regulatory authority. Further, no animal-testing evidence may be used to establish the safety of a cosmetic product or ingredient that is regulated by the FDA after the effective date of this bill, subject to limited exceptions.
Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Act This bill directs the Department of Education to award formula grants to state educational agencies and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies to increase access to school-based, mental-health-services providers at high-need public elementary and secondary schools.
Streamlining EIDL Act This bill requires the Small Business Administration (SBA) to provide status updates on, review, and approve or disapprove Economic Injury Disaster Loans within certain time frames. It also requires the SBA to report on its efforts to address fraud under the program.
Protecting Community Television Act This bill revises the definition of a franchise fee that is paid by a cable operator or cable subscriber to encompass only a tax, fee, or other monetary assessment that is imposed by a franchising authority or other governmental entity.
VA Electronic Health Record Transparency Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to report on the costs of its Electronic Health Record Modernization Program, including by describing all expenses driven by the program.
High Rise Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act of 2021 This bill classifies any automatic fire sprinkler system retrofit property as 15-year property for purposes of accelerated depreciation.
Food Date Labeling Act of 2021 This bill addresses food waste by establishing requirements to standardize the quality date and discard date labels on food packaging.
Critical Infrastructure Manufacturing Feasibility Act This bill requires the Department of Commerce to study and report on products that are in high demand across the critical infrastructure sectors. Critical infrastructure sectors are those whose assets, systems, and networks are vital to national security, the economy, public health or safety, or any combination of those matters. The study must (1) identify the products in high demand across those sectors that are being imported due to manufacturing, material, or supply chain constraints; and (2) analyze the costs, benefits, and feasibility of manufacturing those products in the United States.
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2021 This bill expands two programs that compensate individuals who were exposed to radiation during certain nuclear testing or uranium mining and subsequently developed medical conditions, including cancers. First, the bill expands and extends a program that compensates individuals who were exposed to radiation from atmospheric nuclear testing or other sources and subsequently developed specified cancers. Under current law, this program compensates individuals who were present in a designated geographic area during a period of nuclear testing and certain individuals employed in uranium mining. The bill expands the designated areas to include Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and Guam and additional areas in Arizona, Nevada, and Utah; makes more individuals who worked in uranium mining eligible for the program; increases the amount of compensation awarded to and provides medical benefits for eligible claimants; and extends for 19 years following the bill's enactment the fund that supports this program and the statute of limitations for filing claims (currently, the program terminates on July 10, 2022). Second, the bill makes certain individuals employed in uranium mines or mills eligible for a program that compensates workers, including Department of Energy employees and contractors, for illnesses caused by occupational exposure to radiation and hazardous substances during development and testing of the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile. The bill also establishes a grant program in the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences for institutions of higher education to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling among individuals without occupational exposure.
Allied Health Workforce Diversity Act of 2021 This bill allows the Department of Health and Human Services to provide grants to accredited education programs to increase diversity in the physical therapy, occupational therapy, respiratory therapy, audiology, and speech-language pathology professions. Grants may be used to provide scholarships or to support recruitment and retention of students from underrepresented groups.
Reaching Every Homeless Veteran Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Labor, in administering homeless veterans reintegration programs, to (1) consider grant applications from entities in all states (to the extent practicable), and (2) conduct an outreach and education program in states where no entity has been awarded a grant to ensure communities are aware of homeless veterans reintegration programs.
This resolution expresses that it is the sense of the Senate that the Department of State should lead a coordinated effort to extract U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents from Afghanistan, support Afghan citizens in their efforts to safely leave Afghanistan, and maintain open lines of contact and help with individuals remaining in Afghanistan under the Taliban. The resolution urges the United States to work with the United Nations (U.N.) to establish humanitarian corridors from and to countries bordering Afghanistan and work with such countries to ensure the efficient and safe reception and processing of Afghan refugees. The resolution urges the U.N. to appoint an independent, nongovernmental human rights monitor, who should have continued free access throughout Afghanistan to ensure the Taliban is not brutalizing individuals and families living in Afghanistan, and report to the U.N. Security Council in an ongoing fashion on the human rights and humanitarian situation on the ground in Afghanistan. The resolution urges the United States to convene a high-level summit to identify and consult with countries willing and able to receive Afghan refugees. Finally, the resolution discourages the U.S. government from engaging with the Taliban in any way that would grant the Taliban benefits typically afforded to legitimate governments or would otherwise legitimize the Taliban.
