MIL USHOR-2b Engine

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman David G Valadao (CA-21)

WASHINGTON – Congressman Valadao (CA-22) and Congressman Jim Costa (CA-21) introduced the FAIR Fleets Act. This bipartisan legislation aims at modernizing the United States Postal Service (USPS) vehicle fleet while ensuring both urban and rural communities receive an equitable share of modern, fuel-efficient delivery vehicles.

“In the Central Valley and rural communities across America, families and businesses depend on the Postal Service,” said Congressman Valadao. “Too often, deliveries are delayed because the USPS lacks the resources to modernize, which is why the FAIR Fleets Act is so important. This bipartisan bill gives USPS the tools to upgrade its aging fleet with more fuel-efficient vehicles—improving reliability and reducing costs—to ensure people receive dependable mail services no matter where they live.”

“Every American, whether they live in a big city or a rural town, deserves reliable, timely postal service,” said Congressman Costa. “The FAIR Fleets Act ensures that underserved areas, which too often face delays and aging equipment, are given the same level of service as more populated regions. This bill is about fairness and better efficiency in our mail system.” 

Background:

The USPS operates one of the world’s largest civilian fleets, with over 230,000 vehicles—many over 30 years old. These vehicles, particularly the Grumman LLV model, are beyond their original intended service life. This drives up maintenance costs and emissions while causing significant service delays, particularly in rural areas.

The FAIR Fleets Act would:

• Amend Title 39 of the U.S. Code, requiring the USPS to assess and modernize fleet distribution.
• Prioritize underserved areas such as rural towns, Tribal lands, and high-poverty urban neighborhoods.
• Directs the USPS to submit annual reports to Congress detailing vehicle distribution, progress in underserved areas, and further recommendations for service improvements.

Read the full bill here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Julia Brownley (D-CA)

Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (CA-26) signed a discharge petition to force Speaker Johnson to allow the House to vote on the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act, a bill that would protect Medicaid and food assistance from devastating budget cuts proposed by House Republicans.

“The proposed Republican budget slashes more than $1 trillion from Medicaid and food assistance – essential programs that millions of Americans rely on every day,” said Congresswoman Brownley. “Families in Ventura County and across the country simply cannot afford these cuts, which would drive up costs and deny access to life-saving health care and basic food assistance. Several Republicans have said they oppose these cuts. If that is true, now is the time for them to prove it. They should join House Democrats in forcing an up-or-down vote to protect these vital programs.”

In California’s 26th Congressional District alone, the Republican budget puts more than 200,000 people – including 80,000 children and 24,000 seniors – at risk of losing their Medicaid coverage and threatens the food assistance that 35,000 residents rely on.   

A discharge petition compels a House vote on legislation the Speaker refuses to bring forward. It requires 218 signatures. If five Republicans join all House Democrats in signing the discharge petition, the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act will come to the floor for a vote.

The Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act would protect families by prohibiting Republicans from weaponizing the reconciliation process to cut benefits or remove individuals from Medicaid and SNAP. This would help ensure that tens of millions of Americans continue to have access to essential health care and food assistance.

Issues: 119th Congress, Healthcare

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ron Estes (R-Kansas)

Rep. Estes Congratulates Social Security Administration Commissioner’s Confirmation

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (12th District of Michigan)

Representatives Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and David Valadao (R-CA), co-chairs of the House Asthma and Allergy Caucus, today introduced a bipartisan resolution to designate May “National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month.”
 
“Allergies and asthma impact Americans from every corner of the country, across age groups, sex, and race, myself included – though we know it is historically underserved communities that are impacted the most. My home state of Michigan has one of the highest prevalence rates of asthma in the country,” said Rep. Dingell. “I’m proud to designate May Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month to support increased education and efforts to improve the quality of life for Americans living with these conditions.”

“In California’s Central Valley alone, over half a million people live with asthma and millions more suffer from seasonal or yearly allergies,” said Congressman Valadao. “As co-chair of the Congressional Asthma and Allergy Caucus, I’m proud to join Congresswoman Dingell to help educate the American people about the quality-of-life issues and dangers surrounding asthma and allergies.”

The resolution is endorsed by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

“We’d like to thank Reps. Dingell and Valadao for their leadership of the Asthma and Allergy Caucus and for introducing the Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month Resolution,” said Kenneth Mendez, president and CEO of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA). “On World Asthma Day, we take a moment to reflect on the fact that 10 people die each day from asthma. By raising awareness and leading policy change, the members of the Asthma and Allergy Caucus are doing the work that can save lives and improve the health of the 28 million Americans who have asthma. Given that asthma costs the U.S. $82 billion, continuing support for policies and programs that improve health outcomes for people with asthma provides a significant return on investment.”
 
Rep. Dingell is a co-lead of the Elijah E. Cummings Family Asthma Act, which would expand federal, state, and local efforts to improve care for individuals with asthma.
 
View the full text of the resolution here and below.
 
RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the designation of May 2025 as “National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month”.

Whereas 4,900,000 children in the United States currently have asthma;

Whereas nearly 28,000,000 people in the United States, have asthma and the numbers are increasing each year;

Whereas, in 2018, on average, children missed more than 7,900,000 days of school and adults missed 10,900,000 days of work because of asthma;

Whereas asthma is one of the most common noncommunicable diseases among children;

Whereas 1,500,000 individuals per year visit emergency departments because of asthma’s effects;

Whereas asthma is a leading cause of hospitalizations and school absences due to a chronic disease among children;

Whereas the total economic cost of asthma in the United States was $81,900,000,000 per year from 2008 to 2013;

Whereas fewer than half of people with asthma report being given an asthma action plan, which is key to the prevention of asthma attacks;

Whereas Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous individuals in the United States face the highest burden of asthma;

Whereas asthma is a manageable disease that claimed the lives of over 3,500 Americans in 2021;

Whereas 20,300,000 people in the United States have food allergies, including about 4,300,000 children;

Whereas food allergy has increased among United States children over the past 20 years, with the greatest increase in Black children;

Whereas children with food allergies are 2 to 4 times more likely to have asthma or other allergic diseases; and

Whereas May would be an appropriation month to designate as “Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month”: 

Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives recognizes “National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month” and calls upon the American people to observe such month with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jim Baird (R-IN-04)

Today, Congressman Jim Baird (IN-04) introduced the No Official Palestine Entry (NOPE) Act to expand existing funding prohibitions to include organizations in the United Nations (UN) that afford status, rights, or privileges to the Palestinian Authority (PA) or Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) beyond observer status. Senator Jim Risch (R-ID), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced the companion bill in the U.S. Senate.

“Last year, the United Nation General Assembly (UNGA) voted to enhance the PA’s rights and privileges, despite the fact that the PA has not made any substantial reforms and continues to implement pay-for-slay,” said Congressman Baird. “We have a responsibility to ensure Americans’ tax dollars are not funneled to entities like the PA as they continue to promote human rights violations and incite acts of terrorism. I thank Senator Risch for introducing this legislation in the U.S. Senate and for his leadership on this important issue.”

“Once created to be a bastion of peace and security in the world, the United Nations is now a seat of antisemitism and in desperate need of reform. Israel is one of America’s greatest allies and we cannot tolerate or fund any anti-Israel bias or favoritism for the Palestinian Liberation Organization at the UN,” said Chairman Risch. “These bills will ensure that America has Israel’s back when it matters most.”

“DOGE and the Trump Administration have already highlighted horrific ways in which U.S. tax dollars have been used to promote individuals, entities, or ideas that are at odds with American values and national security priorities,” said Carrie Filipetti, Executive Director of the Vandenberg Coalition. “Closing glaring loopholes by banning funds from going to any UN agency that offers more than observer status to the PA is essential. The time for wasting the American taxpayer dollar and funding our adversaries is over.”

Current U.S. law prohibits U.S. funding to organizations, such as the UN, which give the PLO full membership or standing as a member state. The NOPE Act updates the existing funding prohibition to organizations that offer the Palestinian Authority or the Palestine Liberation Organization “any status, rights, or privileges beyond observer status.”

Congressman Baird and Senator Risch were joined by Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Mike Lee (R-UT), James Lankford (R-OK), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Dave McCormick (R-PA), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Katie Britt (R-AL), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), John Barrasso (R-WY), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), John Hoeven (R-ND, John Cornyn (R-TX), Rick Scott (R-FL), Deb Fischer (R-NE), and Tim Scott (R-SC) as well as Representatives Michael McCaul (R-TX), Randy Weber (R-TX), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Barry Moore (R-AL), Rudy Yakym (R-IN), and Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) in introducing this legislation.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Ted Lieu (33 District of California)

WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County), Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Congresswoman Hillary Scholten (D-MI), Congressman Maxwell Frost (D-FL), and Congressman Deborah Ross (D-NC) reintroduced the Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act. This legislation would prevent law enforcement from improperly surveilling women receiving reproductive health care, including preventing access to health messaging apps, period trackers, and geolocation data. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, law enforcement agencies have used surveillance data to track and prosecute abortions. This legislation would protect Americans’ reproductive data privacy by limiting law enforcement access to reproductive and sexual health services data. The bill protects information related to abortion and IVF care, the use or purchase of contraceptives, pregnancy-related conditions, and more. 

“Patients should be able to make medical decisions in consultation with their doctors without fear of law enforcement involvement,” said Rep. Lieu. “This fundamental right to privacy extends to the data used in medical settings and for treatment and care. We are reintroducing this bill because law enforcement should not have the ability to use private medical data against anyone seeking reproductive or sexual health care. Criminalizing women’s health is draconian and dangerous – and I am pleased to join my colleagues in fighting for these necessary protections.”

“Prosecutors and law enforcement are weaponizing every tool at their disposal to investigate and enforce abortion bans and restrictions,” said Rep. Jacobs. “And now that people are increasingly turning to online abortion clinics for care, people are increasingly left wide open and vulnerable to the unregulated digital surveillance system. That’s why I’m proud to co-lead the Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act to ban law enforcement from using surveillance and other data collection methods to investigate or prosecute abortion patients or those helping them. Decisions about if, when, and how to grow a family should be private – and our data should be too.”

“No one should have to fear that their private health decisions could be tracked, surveilled, or criminalized,” said Rep. Scholten. “In the wake of the Dobbs decision, we’ve seen law enforcement weaponize personal data to target people seeking reproductive care–including abortion, IVF, and even birth control. The Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act draws a clear line: your health data is yours, and it should never be used against you. I’m proud to co-lead this legislation to defend the fundamental right to privacy and protect women from dangerous overreach.” 

“It’s sickening to see the same Republican leaders across our country who cry wolf about big government turn to big tech to access the private digital information and even the private messages of people seeking abortion care to go after them,” said Rep. Frost. “Florida has been at the forefront of efforts to criminalize abortion; imagine what GOP leaders could do with Floridians’ private texts and location information. We cannot let that happen. I’m proud to support the Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act in the continued fight to protect abortion access for anyone who needs it and keep our private medical decisions private.”

“In my home state of North Carolina, we saw a dangerous 12-week abortion ban go into effect following the Dobbs decision,” said Rep. Ross. “Now, women are scared to get the health care they need, and doctors are facing retribution for doing their jobs. That’s why I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act, which would prevent government and law enforcement entities from collecting data that would be used to prosecute or criminalize women seeking reproductive care. This bill offers essential protections for women in North Carolina and nationwide who are facing real threats to their health care.”

This bill is endorsed by: Catholics for Choice, Reproductive Freedom For All, National Women’s Law Center Action Fund, League of Women Voters, ACLU, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Center for Reproductive Rights, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Council of Jewish Women, Project on Government Oversight, Center for American Progress, National Network of Abortion Funds, Power To Decide, National Abortion Federation, All* Above All, and Guttmacher Institute.

 Cody Venzke, Senior Policy Counsel, ACLU:

“Privacy ensures that we have the space to make decisions about our lives, including when and how to have children. The Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act is a critical step in bolstering privacy to combat increasingly invasive efforts to criminalize our most basic rights to reproductive care and to make fundamental decisions about our lives.” 

Rachana Desai Martin, Chief of Government Relations and External Affairs, Center for Reproductive Rights: 

“The Center is proud to endorse the Reproductive Data Privacy and Protection Act. With abortion banned in 12 states, we need stronger protections for people seeking abortions now more than ever. This bill would provide important new protections for our reproductive health data and serves as an important legislative check to ensure sensitive health information remains protected from abuse.”

 Jocelyn Frye, President of the National Partnership for Women & Families: 

“The growing number of state abortion restrictions means millions of women, especially women of color, are at risk of being criminalized for their pregnancy outcomes. We need strong protections for those seeking care as well as for those providing abortion care, in order to keep their personal information safe. No one should be prosecuted just for seeking the health care they need, and no one should have to live in fear that their personal data will be used against them. We are grateful for Rep. Lieu’s introduction of this bill to safeguard the privacy of pregnant people in the post-Dobbs landscape.”

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA)

The U.S. Senate passed Rep. Griffith’s H.J. Res. 61, Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to “National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Rubber Tire Manufacturing.”

This Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution overturns the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Rubber Tire Manufacturing National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) rule. Finalized November 29, 2024, at the conclusion of the Biden Administration, EPA could not even quantify whether public health would be protected and unreasonably requires rubber tire manufacturers to install regenerative thermal oxidizers (RTOs), which will cost American manufacturers millions and potentially lead to layoffs.

U.S. Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) released the following statement:

“House and Senate Republicans are acting decisively to repeal onerous regulations from the Biden EPA, like the rubber tire manufacturing rule, that do very little to serve public health. Like many of the regulations issued during the waning days of the Biden-Harris Administration, the rubber tire manufacturing emission standard utilized questionable emissions data and pointed to negligible health benefits as justification for the rule. Thanks to strong conservative leaders in the Senate, like Senators Tim Scott and Roger Wicker, Congress is exercising its authority to undo this harmful Biden EPA measure and provide relief to America’s rubber tire manufacturers.”

BACKGROUND

Rep. Griffith introduced H.J. Res. 61 in the last week of February. Rep. Griffith introduced the CRA alongside U.S. Senators Tim Scott and Roger Wicker.

On March 5, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.J. Res. 61. Rep. Griffith spoke on the House floor defending the CRA.

Following House passage, Rep. Griffith celebrated House passage with several House GOP leaders.

H.J. Res. 61 must be signed by President Trump for the resolution to go into effect.

On March 12, the Trump EPA announced reconsideration of air rules regulating American energy, manufacturing and chemical sectors.

The Biden EPA rule would negatively impact the Goodyear facility in Danville, Virginia. 

Last week, Rep. Griffith defended several CRAs on the House floor seeking to overturn Biden EPA measures that facilitated unfair electric vehicle mandates and imposed stricter car emissions standards on the American people.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (12th District of Michigan)

Dingell Demands Up-or-Down Vote To Protect Medicaid, Food Assistance

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)

Washington, D.C. – Today, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries held a press conference with Whip Clark, Ranking Member Boyle, Ranking Member Pallone and Ranking Member Craig after House Democrats filed a discharge petition on the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act to protect the healthcare and nutritional assistance of hardworking Americans from devastating Republican cuts.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Good afternoon, everyone. It’s an honor and a privilege today to be joined by House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, Frank Pallone, the once and future Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, who of course is the leading champion in the House Democratic Caucus, in the Congress, for the healthcare of the American people. Certainly, Angie Craig, the top Democrat on the Ag Committee, who’s doing a tremendous job. And, of course, Brendan Boyle, the future Chair of the Budget Committee, who has been our point person on budget reconciliation. House Republicans are determined to jam a reckless and extreme budget down the throats that the American people that will enact the largest cut to Medicaid and the largest cut to SNAP in American history. Children, families, women, veterans, older Americans, people with disabilities and everyday Americans will be hurt. These proposed cuts to Medicaid and SNAP are unacceptable, unconscionable and un-American. Several so-called swing seat and moderate Republicans have indicated that they are opposed to these devastating proposed cuts to SNAP and Medicaid.

House Democrats earlier today, led by Brendan Boyle in terms of the discharge petition and Frank Pallone and Angie Craig as it relates to the underlying legislation Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP, have given Republicans an opportunity to actually not simply talk about defending the best interests of the American people, but be about it. The discharge petition is now live on the House Floor. All we need are four Republicans to do the right thing, stand up for Medicaid and stand up for SNAP so they can stand up for the American people and we can stop the devastating cuts that Republicans are proposing to the healthcare of the American people and cuts that would literally take food out of the mouths of children and families. Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP. I thank Frank Pallone, Angie Craig and Brendan Boyle for their leadership on this effort. All we need are four House Republicans to join Democrats, in protecting the healthcare and nutritional assistance of the American people.

Full press conference can be watched here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (21st District of New York)

Stefanik Delivers U.S. Department of Education Investigation into Title IX Violations at Saratoga Springs City School District | Press Releases | Congresswoman Elise Stefanik

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