Protecting Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions Act of 2021 This bill nullifies specified guidance and final rule provisions pertaining to Section 1332 waivers (also known as State Innovation Waivers or State Relief and Empowerment Waivers) issued by the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Health and Human Services. The provisions allow states to forego certain requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in order to implement experimental plans for health care coverage, as long as the resulting coverage meets certain statutory criteria. The provisions, which supersede earlier guidance from 2015, alter agency interpretation of how states may satisfy the statutory criteria for waiver approval. For example, the provisions (1) redefine acceptable coverage under such waivers to include short-term, limited-duration insurance and association health plans; (2) allow the comprehensiveness and affordability of coverage under such waivers to be assessed based on projected availability, rather than enrollment; and (3) allow the level of coverage to be assessed based on the effects over the entire course of the waiver, rather than per year.
Public Housing Emergency Response Act This bill authorizes additional assistance from the Public Housing Capital Fund to public housing agencies based upon capital need as determined by the agencies' most recent Physical Needs Assessment.
No Pensions for Corrupt Politicians Act of 2021 This bill makes a Member of Congress who has been convicted of a crime related to public corruption ineligible to receive certain retirement payments between the date of sentencing and the date of final conviction. Such retirement payments are those made under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees' Retirement System based on the individual's service as a Member. Under current law, a Member must forgo receipt of these payments only after a final conviction (i.e., after the exhaustion of all appeals under the judicial process). The bill eliminates these payments to a Member from the date of sentencing for the conviction.
Presidential Records Preservation Act This bill directs the President to make and preserve records containing adequate and proper documentation of' presidential activities, deliberations, decisions, and policies, including establishing records management controls to capture, manage, and preserve electronic messages and ensure that such messages are readily accessible for retrieval through electronic searches.
Uzbekistan Normalized Trade Act This bill authorizes the President to extend nondiscriminatory treatment (i.e., normal trade relations treatment) to products of Uzbekistan.
Educational Notification and Disclosure of Actions risking Loss of Life by Hazing Act or the END ALL Hazing Act This bill requires institutions of higher education (IHEs) that participate in federal student-aid programs to collect information and publicly report on hazing-related misconduct. Specifically, IHEs must prepare biannual reports and post the reports on their websites. The reports must include information on hazing-related misconduct committed by a student organization, including the name of the student organization that committed the violation, a description of the violation, and sanctions placed on the organization. Further, IHEs must report to campus police and law enforcement authorities within 72 hours of becoming aware of any allegation of hazing that involved serious bodily injury or a significant risk of serious bodily injury. The bill does not apply to foreign IHEs.
Broadband Justice Act of 2021 This bill includes broadband high-speed internet service as a utility subsidized by federally assisted housing programs through utility allowances. The bill also establishes grants and loans for housing providers, public housing agencies, and other public entities to provide access to broadband high-speed internet service to residents of federally assisted housing through the installation of such service and other infrastructure improvements.
Help Independent Tracks Succeed Act or the HITS Act This bill permits taxpayers to treat as currently deductible expenses the cost of qualified sound recording productions not exceeding $150,000 in a taxable year. The bill defines qualified sound recording production as certain sound recordings produced and recorded in the United States.
Student Loan Refinancing and Recalculation Act This bill provides for the refinancing or deferral of certain federal student loans. Specifically, the bill directs the Department of Education to establish a program to refinance the outstanding principal, interest, and late charges on federal student loans in order to give borrowers fixed interest rates equal to the 10-year Treasury note rate plus one percentage point. Further, the bill eliminates origination fees on the loans. In addition, the bill allows borrowers in medical, veterinary, or dental internship or residency programs to defer student loan payments until the completion of their programs.
This bill eliminates the exemption of short-term, limited-duration health insurance plans from the federal requirements for individual health insurance coverage beginning on January 1, 2023. Currently, short-term, limited-duration plans may offer coverage for a limited amount of time and are exempt from the market requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (e.g., coverage of individuals with preexisting conditions).
State Health Care Premium Reduction Act of 2021 This bill establishes and provides funding for the Improve Health Insurance Affordability Fund. States must use allocated funds to (1) issue reinsurance payments to health insurers (i.e., reimbursements to protect insurers against exceedingly high claims) for individual health insurance coverage, or (2) provide other assistance to reduce out-of-pocket costs (e.g., copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles) for qualified health plans offered in the individual market through an exchange. Reinsurance payments using such funds may not be applied to (1) grandfathered health plans in place on March 23, 2010, (2) non-grandfathered transitional plans meeting specified requirements identified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), or (3) student health insurance plans provided by institutions of higher education. The bill appropriates $10 billion per year for the fund, which the CMS must distribute to states in accordance with a specified methodology based on the estimated amount of reinsurance payments for individuals in a state during the given year, subject to specified deductions. Additionally, states must submit applications explaining how they will use such funds. In the event that a state does not submit an application, the bill directs the CMS to allocate the calculated funding amount to reinsurance programs in that state.
Veterans Economic Recovery Act of 2021 This bill addresses the employment and retraining of veterans, specifically during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency. The bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement a program under which the VA must provide up to 12 months of nontransferable retraining assistance (including a housing stipend) to up to 35,000 eligible veterans for the pursuit of a specified program of education. Under the bill, an eligible veteran is an individual who, among other requirements, is unemployed due to COVID-19. Veterans who receive retraining assistance may only use such assistance to pursue specified programs, including those designed to provide training for high-demand occupations. The bill requires the Department of Labor to conduct outreach to veterans participating in the program to notify them of employment placement services and facilitate employment placement. Additionally, the VA must enter into a memorandum of understanding with one or more qualified nonprofit organizations to facilitate the employment of veterans participating in the program. The Government Accountability Office must report on the outcomes and effectiveness of the retraining assistance program. The program will terminate 21 months after the date of the enactment of this bill.
