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Weekly Legislative Update: April 26, 2021

Congressional Schedule: April 26-30, 2021

Floor Action:

The Senate is in session this week.

The House has a committee work period and does not have any scheduled votes.

Mark-Ups:

Health- On Wednesday, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee will mark up several bills, including S. 198, Data Mapping to Save Mom’s Lives Act. 

Violence Against Women- Also on Wednesday, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee will mark up S.120, the Safe Connections Act, a bill to prevent and respond to the misuse of communications services that facilitates domestic violence and other crimes. 

Hearings: 

Child Care- On Tuesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing, “Supporting Children, Workers and Families by Strengthening America’s Child Care Sector.” 

Employment- On Thursday, the Senate Special Committee on Aging will hold a hearing, “A Changing Workforce: Supporting Older Workers Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond.”

Also on Thursday, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Diversity and Inclusion will hold a hearing, “Closing the Racial and Gender Wealth Gap Through Compensation Equity.”

Family Support- On Wednesday, the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing, “Building Back Better: Investing in Improving Schools, Creating Jobs, and Strengthening Families and Our Economy.”


Bills Introduced: April 19-23, 2021

Abortion

S.1325—Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)/Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (4/22/21)—A bill to ensure that women seeking an abortion are informed of the medical risks associated with the abortion procedure and the major developmental characteristics of the unborn child before giving their informed consent to receive an abortion.

H.R. 2782—Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO)/Energy and Commerce (4/22/21)—A bill to ensure that women seeking an abortion are notified, before giving informed consent to receive an abortion, of the medical risks associated with the abortion procedure and the major developmental characteristics of the unborn child.

Child Care

S.1360—Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)/Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (4/22/21)—A bill to promote child care and early learning, and for other purposes.

H.R. 2817—Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA)/Education and Labor (4/22/21)—A bill to promote child care and early learning, and for other purposes.

Child Protection 

H.R. 2747—Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA)/Education and Labor (4/21/21)—A bill to provide for better protections for children raised in kinship families outside of the foster care system.

H.R. 2771—Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)/Energy and Commerce (4/22/21)—A bill to improve the health and well-being of maltreated infants and toddlers through the implementation of infant-toddler court teams within states, and for other purposes.

Crime

S.1339—Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV)/Judiciary (4/22/21)—A bill to ensure crime victims are not denied compensation because of rape kit backlogs, and for other purposes.

Employment

H.R. 2701—Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI)/Ways and Means (4/20/21)—A bill to provide grants for the conduct of demonstration projects designed to provide education and training for eligible individuals to enter and follow a career pathway in the field of pregnancy or childbirth, under the health profession opportunity grant program under section 2008 of the Social Security Act.

Family Support 

S. 1270—Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA)/Agriculture, Nutrition, Forestry (4/21/21)—A bill to improve the child and adult care food program.

Health

S. 1234—Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)/Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (4/20/21)—A bill to support states in their work to end preventable morbidity and mortality in maternity care by using evidence-based quality improvement to protect the health of mothers during pregnancy, childbirth, and in the postpartum period and to reduce neonatal and infant mortality, to eliminate racial disparities in maternal health outcomes, and for other purposes.

S. 1312—Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT)/Finance (4/22/21)—A bill to eliminate the waiting periods for disability insurance benefits and Medicare coverage for individuals with metastatic breast cancer and for other purposes.

S.1333—Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)/Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (4/22/21)—A bill to address maternal mortality and morbidity.

Military

S. 1238—Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)/Armed Services (4/20/21)—A bill to ensure that members of the Armed Forces and their families have access to the contraception they need in order to promote the health and readiness of all members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes.

H.R. 2709—Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA)/Armed Services (4/20/21)—A bill to ensure that members of the Armed Forces and their families have access to the contraception they need in order to promote the health and readiness of all members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. 

Miscellaneous

S. 1226—Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA)/Environment and Public Works (4/20/21)—A bill to designate the United States courthouse located at 1501 North 6th Street in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, as the “Sylvia H. Rambo United States Courthouse”, and for other purposes. 

S. Res. 178—Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR)/Passed by Senate (4/22/21)—A resolution honoring the life and legacy of award-winning children’s author Beverly Cleary.

Reproductive Health

H. Res. 338—Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)/Energy and Commerce (4/20/21)—A resolution recognizing that infertility is a widespread problem that affects populations of diverse ages, races, ethnicities, and genders.

STEM

H.R. 2695—Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)/Science, Space, and Technology (4/20/21)—A bill to provide for research to better understand the causes and consequences of sexual harassment affecting individuals in the scientific, technical, engineering, and mathematics workforce and to examine policies to reduce the prevalence and negative impact of such harassment, and for other purposes. 

H.R. 2784—Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA)/Education and Labor (4/22/21)—A bill to create a new national program to support mid-career workers, including workers from underrepresented populations, in reentering the STEM workforce, by providing funding to small- and medium-sized STEM businesses so the businesses can offer paid internships or other returnships that lead to positions above entry level.

Tax Policy 

S. 1233—Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD)/Finance (4/20/21)—A bill to simplify reporting requirements, promote tax compliance, and reduce tip reporting compliance burdens in the beauty service industry.

H.R. 2714—Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN)/Ways and Means (4/20/21)—A bill to allow for the inclusion of additional expenses in dependent care FSAs, and for other purposes.

Veterans

S. 1220—Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)/Veterans’ Affairs (4/19/21)—A bill to recognize and honor the service of individuals who served in the United States Cadet Nurse Corps during World War II, and for other purposes.

S. 1243—Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA)/Veterans’ Affairs (4/20/21)—A bill to improve the equal employment opportunity functions of Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

H.R. 2704—Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH)/Veterans’ Affairs (4/20/21)—A bill to improve the equal employment opportunity functions of Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

S. 1280—Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)/Veterans’ Affairs (4/21/21)—A bill to improve the reproductive assistance provided by the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs to certain members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their spouses or partners, and for other purposes.

H.R. 2724—Rep. Antonio Delgado (D-NY)/Veterans’ Affairs (4/21/21)—A bill to      direct the secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide for peer support specialists for claimants who are survivors of  military sexual trauma, and for other purposes.

H.R. 2734—Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA)/Veterans’ Affairs, Armed Services (4/21/21)—A bill to improve the reproductive assistance provided by the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs to certain members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their spouses or partners, and for other purposes.

Violence Against Women 

S. 1275—Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA)/Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (4/21/21)—A bill to amend the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act to make improvements.