Represent America Abroad Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of State to establish the Represent America Mid-Career Foreign Service Entry Program to increase diversity in the Foreign Service by recruiting mid-career professionals who are from minority groups. As part of the program, the State Department shall (1) establish and publish eligibility criteria for participation; (2) carry out recruitment efforts to attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals from minority groups; and (3) include appropriate mentorship and other career development opportunities for program participants. The State Department must submit an annual report on the status of the program.
Crimea Annexation Non-Recognition Ac t This bill prohibits any federal agency from taking any action or extending any assistance that recognizes or implies recognition of Russia's sovereignty over Crimea, its airspace, or its territorial waters.
This resolution expresses support for the designation of DIPG Awareness Day. DIPG is diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, a terminal childhood brain cancer.
This resolution recognizes the forthcoming centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. The resolution acknowledges the historical significance of this event as one of the largest single instances of state-sanctioned violence against Black people in American history; honors the lives and legacies of the estimated 300 Black individuals who were killed during the massacre and the nearly 9,000 who were left homeless and penniless; condemns efforts to cover up the truth and shield the white community, especially government officials, from accountability; condemns the continued legacy of racism and white supremacy against Black people in the United States, particularly in the form of police brutality; encourages education about the massacre, the history of white supremacy that fueled the massacre, and subsequent attempts to deny or cover up the massacre, in all elementary and secondary education settings and in institutions of higher education; and recognizes the commitment of Congress to acknowledge and learn from the history of racism and racial violence to reverse the legacy of white supremacy and fight for racial justice.
Preventing Foreign Attempts to Erode Healthcare Innovation Act This bill prohibits the use of federal funds to support, allow, or facilitate the negotiation or approval of any measure at the World Trade Organization to waive intellectual property rights, including the waiver proposed by India and South Africa to suspend certain provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights to facilitate the prevention, containment, and treatment of COVID-19.
SBA Cyber Awareness Act This bill addresses the cybersecurity of the Small Business Administration (SBA). Specifically, it requires the SBA to report annually to Congress on (1) an assessment of SBA's information technology (IT) and cybersecurity; (2) a strategy to increase such cybersecurity; (3) a detailed account of SBA's IT component or system manufactured by a company located in the People's Republic of China; and (4) any SBA cyber threat, breach, or cyber attack that occurred during two years before the report, including SBA's actions to respond to or remediate it.
Social Media Privacy Protection and Consumer Rights Act of 2021 This bill requires online platform operators to inform a user, prior to a user creating an account or otherwise using the platform, that the user's personal data produced during online behavior will be collected and used by the operator and third parties. The operator must provide a user the option to specify privacy preferences, and an operator may deny certain services or complete access to a user if the user's privacy elections create inoperability in the platform. The operator must (1) offer a user a copy of the personal data of the user that the operator has processed, free of charge, and in an electronic format; and (2) notify a user within 72 hours of becoming aware that the user's data has been transmitted in violation of the security platform. A violation of the bill's privacy requirements shall be considered an unfair or deceptive act or practice under the Federal Trade Commission Act. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may enforce this bill against common carriers regulated by the Federal Communications Commission under the Communications Act of 1934 and nonprofit organizations. Currently, common carriers regulated under that Act are exempt from the FTC's enforcement authority, and nonprofit organizations are subject to FTC enforcement only if they provide substantial economic benefit to their for-profit members. A state may bring a civil action in federal court regarding such violations.
No Subsidies for Government Purchases of Electric Vehicles Act This bill disallows a tax credit for qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicles that are sold to the federal government or a state government.
End the Threat of Default Act This bill repeals the public debt limit, which applies to most debt held by the federal government.
Institutional Grants for New Infrastructure, Technology, and Education for HBCU Excellence Act or the IGNITE HBCU Excellence Act This bill establishes a grant program to support long-term improvements of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and graduate programs at HBCUs. Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to award grants to HBCUs to improve campus facilities. A recipient must use grant funds for certain activities, such as constructing or renovating facilities, carrying out major repairs, and strengthening the safety and security of a campus. Any new construction, modernization, or renovation projects must meet building code and energy and water conservation requirements. Further, HBCUs must seek to procure contracts from certain small businesses, including those owned and controlled by veterans and service-disabled veterans. The bill prohibits the use of grant funds for specified activities, including for the payment of routine and predictable maintenance costs, minor repairs, and utility bills. The Government Accountability Office must study the implementation of the grant program. The bill also requires ED to repay the outstanding balance of principal, interest, fees, and costs and any related reimbursements for certain capital financing loans.
Transportation Equity Act This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to reestablish the Transportation Equity Committee. The committee must provide independent advice and recommendations to DOT on transportation equity issues. The committee must also evaluate the work of DOT in connecting people to economic and related forms of opportunity and carrying out its strategic, research, technological, regulatory, community engagement, and economic policy activities related to transportation and opportunity. In addition, DOT must appoint a full-time federal employee to serve as coordinator and act as the designated federal officer for the committee.
Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2019 or the RPM Act of 2019 [ sic ] This bill authorizes the modification of a vehicle's air emission controls for vehicles that are not legal for operation on a street or highway and are used solely for competition.
