Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith

Maddy summaryThis bill extends the timeframe for funding middle-mile broadband infrastructure projects in rural areas under the Rural Electrification Act. It amends Section 602(g) by changing the period from 2018-2023 to 2026-2031, allowing rural communities more time to access and deploy this critical internet backbone infrastructure. Middle-mile infrastructure connects local networks to the broader internet, directly benefiting rural residents and businesses lacking reliable high-speed internet access. The change is a simple extension of an existing program's timeline without creating new funding or requirements.

Maddy summaryThis bill modifies tax rules for bonds used to fund agricultural and manufacturing facilities. It expands what counts as a "manufacturing facility" to include production of intangible property (like software) and related on-site facilities, while raising the dollar limit for qualified small issue bonds from $10 million to $30 million (with annual inflation adjustments). It also increases the annual bond limit for first-time farmers from $450,000 to $1 million and changes how farmland size is measured for eligibility. The changes apply to bonds issued after the bill's enactment date for manufacturing and after December 31, 2025, for farm-related bonds. These adjustments primarily affect agricultural businesses and manufacturers seeking tax-exempt financing for facility projects.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends the National School Lunch Program to allow schools participating in the program to serve whole milk as an option to students, in addition to reduced-fat and fat-free milk. It permits schools to offer whole milk (organic or non-organic), reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free milk, as well as lactose-free milk and nutritionally equivalent nondairy beverages that meet specific nutritional standards. The bill clarifies that milk fat in whole milk should not be counted as saturated fat for compliance with meal nutrition standards. Additionally, it requires schools to include food allergy information in training for food service personnel. These changes directly affect schools participating in the National School Lunch Program and the students who eat school meals.

Maddy summaryThis bill changes U.S. immigration law to make certain fraud convictions deportable without requiring a minimum fraud loss amount. It targets immigrants (aliens) convicted of fraud against any private individual, fund, corporation, or government entity, removing the previous threshold for deportation. It also adds provisions to revoke citizenship for naturalized citizens convicted of such fraud crimes, requiring courts to cancel their naturalization certificates. The changes apply to fraud committed on or after September 30, 1996, if not previously charged before the bill's enactment.

Maddy summarySRES 288 is a Senate resolution condemning recent ideologically motivated attacks on Jewish individuals, including a violent assault in Boulder, Colorado, on June 1, 2025, and other incidents like the attack on Israeli Embassy staff in Washington, D.C., and fires at the Pennsylvania Governor’s Residence. The resolution formally expresses the Senate’s condemnation of these acts as part of a growing pattern of antisemitism and politically motivated violence. It reaffirms the Senate’s commitment to protecting peaceful assembly and religious practice, while urging federal, state, and local law enforcement to thoroughly investigate such incidents and calling on community leaders to publicly oppose antisemitism. This resolution has no legal effect but serves as a formal statement of the Senate’s position.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide cost-share grants covering 70% of the expenses for farmers and eligible schools to retrofit agricultural tractors with rollover protection structures (ROPS) - safety cages that prevent injury if a tractor flips. It directly affects agricultural producers and specific educational institutions, including vocational schools, colleges with agricultural programs, and secondary schools offering agricultural training. The grants cover costs for purchasing, transporting, and installing ROPS that meet SAE safety standards and include seatbelts, with higher coverage if costs exceed $500. Funding of $725,000 annually from 2027-2031 will support these grants, administered through a designated program manager.

Maddy summaryThe Roadway Safety Modernization Act of 2025 requires states to integrate proven safety tools like predictive analytics and telematics into highway safety planning and freight programs. It directs state highway agencies to use these technologies to identify high-risk road segments, evaluate crash causes, and improve safety project effectiveness. The bill also mandates the Transportation Department to issue guidance on data privacy, tool validation, and transparency for these safety technologies. This directly affects state transportation departments and freight operators who must adopt these data-driven approaches in their safety planning under federal highway programs.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new payroll tax deduction for qualifying small businesses, allowing them to deduct 12% of wages paid to designated low-wage employees. It directly affects small businesses meeting specific criteria: those with no more than 15 full-time employees, meeting gross receipts limits, and certifying compliance. The deduction applies only to the lowest-wage full-time employees (excluding high earners), with the number of eligible employees decreasing annually (starting at 10 in 2026 and ending at 4 in 2033). The provision expires after 2033 and applies to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2025.

Sentencing Accountability For Exploitation Act or the SAFE Act This bill directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and amend its guidelines and policy statements applicable to federal criminal offenses involving the production, receipt, transport, shipment, or distribution of child sexual abuse material to (1) account for the actual and potential harm from the offense and changes since the last amendments with respect to the typical offense behavior and modern technologies, and (2) better reflect the spectrum of offender culpability.

Stop Sextortion Act This bill criminalizes threats to distribute child sexual abuse material to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress. This practice is commonly referred to as sextortion . The bill also increases criminal penalties for related offenses that involve the use of child sexual abuse material to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress. Specifically, the bill establishes new federal criminal offenses for threatening to distribute child pornography or a visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct with intent to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress. An offense, or an attempt or conspiracy to commit the offense, is subject to criminal penalties. Additionally, the bill increases the maximum prison term for various offenses involving the sexual exploitation of children if those offenses involve the use of child pornography or a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct with intent to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress.