MIL USHOR-2b Engine

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Don Beyer (D-VA)

Today, Congressmen Glenn Grothman (R-WI) and Don Beyer (D-VA) introduced the No Tax Subsidies for Stadiums Act, a bill that will end taxpayer subsidies for the construction of professional sports stadiums. A companion bill has been introduced in the Senate by Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

“Congress is sometimes criticized for providing special tax breaks for wealthy individuals and when it comes to sports stadiums, it is true. We should no longer allow provisions that were intended to help local communities build infrastructure, like roads, be abused to help subsidize multi-billion dollar sports franchises and owners. Hardworking Americans should not be forced to finance billion-dollar sports stadiums,” said Grothman. “Sports infrastructure brings value to communities. But, just like most government programs, we must be intellectually honest and question the need for tax dollars to subsidize projects. If a billion-dollar stadium is worth the investment, the builder should seek those investments in the free market instead of demanding discounted rates courtesy of taxpayers.

“American taxpayers should not be forced to fund the building of sports stadiums for super-rich sports team owners,” said Beyer. “Billionaire owners who need cash can borrow from the market like any other business. Arguments that stadiums boost job creation have been repeatedly discredited. In a time when there is a debate over whether the country can ‘afford’ investments in health care, childcare, education, or fighting climate change, it is ridiculous to even contemplate such a radical misuse of publicly subsidized bonds.”

Background

Under current law, professional sports teams are allowed to finance stadium construction using tax-exempt municipal bonds, a provision originally intended to help local governments fund essential public infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals, and roads. This loophole has enabled wealthy sports franchises to benefit from taxpayer dollars, often with little measurable economic return to the surrounding communities.

Since 2000, 43 professional sports stadiums have been financed with tax-exempt municipal bonds, costing American taxpayers an estimated $4.3 billion in lost federal revenue.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Diana DeGette (First District of Colorado)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-01) released the following statement after it was reported that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. might be sending staff to brief the Energy & Commerce Committee on his extreme and drastic cuts to HHS.

“The massive cuts at HHS, directed by Elon Musk and his DOGE cronies, are illegal and will cause the most harm to public health I have seen throughout my time in Congress. Secretary Kennedy is going to set back American biomedical research a generation, delaying cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes, and he will devastate our ability to stop the next pandemic.

“A briefing is the bare minimum that Secretary Kennedy can offer, but instead, he would reportedly send staff rather than do it himself. While a staff briefing is better than nothing, it has not been scheduled, and there is no assurance that it will be bipartisan. 

“As the top Democrat on the Health Subcommittee, I am calling on Secretary Kennedy to appear at a hearing immediately to explain his careless cuts and assure our Subcommittee that science—not discounted conspiracy theories—will guide his department’s decision-making. This is not about politics. It is about preserving Congress’s Constitutional role and promoting the health and safety of every American.” 

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Danny K Davis (7th District of Illinois)

Building Child Care for a Better Future Act expands guaranteed child care funding and creates grants to improve child care workforce, supply, quality, and access.     In contrast, Republican-proposed funding cuts to pay for tax giveaways to the wealthiest individuals and corporations would eliminate child care for 40,000 children.

 

Washington, D.C.- Representative Danny K. Davis (D-IL), Representative Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI), Representative Stacey E. Plaskett (D-VI), and Representative Steven Horsford (D-NV) announced the introduction of the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act (H.R. 2595) to dramatically increase guaranteed child care funding to address child care needs and create grants to enhance child care workforce, supply, quality, and access.  Senators Ron Wyden and Elizabeth Warren will introduce companion legislation in the Senate. 

The need to rebuild a stronger, more robust and more equitable child care system is more important than ever as working families across America struggle to access affordable, quality child care. Alarmingly, Republicans are threatening to eliminate child care for 40,000 children to pay for their massive tax giveaways for the wealthiest individuals and corporations. Additionally, the mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, including the offices at the Administration for Children and Families that administer child care and Head Start programs, will make child care even less accessible and affordable, as well as less safe. The long-term solutions in this bill complement the other Democratic bills that address the immediate child care cliff created by Republican inaction.

High-quality, affordable child care is essential to the economic well-being of families, businesses, and our country. Yet, child care places a major financial burden on American families. The price of child care can range from $5,357 to $17,171 per year depending on location and type of care. Astoundingly, the cost of center-based care for two children is more than the average mortgage in 45 states and more than the average annual rent in all 50 states plus DC.  Households under the poverty line spend nearly one third of their income on child care, and increases in median childcare prices are connected to lower maternal employment rates.  Further, the child care crisis hits families of color disproportionately hard.  For a single parent who has never been married who is Black, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, or American Indian/Alaska Native, child care can cost 36%, 41%, or 49% of the median income, respectively, compared to only 31% for single White parents.  Further, Latino and American Indian and Alaska Native parents disproportionately live in child care deserts. 

The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act addresses the child care needs of families and long-term stability of the child care system. Specifically, the bill:

• Helps working families with their child care needs by expanding guaranteed child care funding by increasing the Child Care Entitlement to States to $20 billion per year, over a five-fold increase in funding from the current $3.55 billion per year. Further, the bill increases funding for tribes, tribal organizations, and territories. The bill builds on the Democrats’ permanent increase in guaranteed child care funding to states in 2021, which also provided the first-ever guaranteed funding allotments for the U.S. territories in the Child Care Entitlement to States. 

• Creates new grants to improve child care workforce, supply, quality, and access in communities experiencing child care shortages. Funds could be used for any purpose under the Child Care Development Block Grant to address local needs, including:  increasing child care slots; supporting workforce training and expansion; expanding operations of community or neighborhood-based family child care networks; and recruiting providers and staff.

“High-quality, affordable child care is essential to the economic well-being of families, businesses, and our country,” said Rep. Davis.  “The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act would provide $20 billion in guaranteed grants to states, tribes, and territories to make child care affordable.  Further, the bill would create $5 billion in new grants to improve child care workforce, supply, quality, and access in communities experiencing child care shortages. It is critical that Congress acts now to help working families by stabilizing our nation’s child care system and to reject the dangerous Republican cuts to child care.” 

“Too many families in Oregon and across the country struggle to find affordable child care, and child care providers often do not make a living wage,” said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. “The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act will strengthen our child care system by investing in families, child care providers, and early childhood educators. The investments in this bill will open up opportunities for children, families, childcare providers, and the economy.”

“The cost of childcare continues to squeeze families and is even more burdensome for low-income families.  At the same time, too many childcare workers don’t earn a living wage and are struggling to get by. Our legislation would help make high-quality childcare more accessible and affordable and invest in its workforce,” said Rep. Moore.

“As part of the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021, Congress expanded the Child Care Entitlement to States program to include U.S. territories like my district for the first time,” said Rep. Plaskett.  “The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act significantly increases investments in childcare for American families living in U.S. territories and enhances our commitment to equity. The annual average cost of childcare ranges from $4,000 to as high as $25,000, depending on location. I am proud to partner with my colleagues and respond to the critical need nationwide for available, accessible, and affordable childcare.”

“Across Nevada and the nation, working families are caught in a tough balancing act – juggling skyrocketing costs of child care while trying to earn a living,” said Rep. Horsford. “For the poorest households, child care isn’t just expensive: it’s a crushing burden, often costing more than rent or a mortgage. If we truly believe in the American dream, we must eliminate the barriers holding families back from opportunities of economic mobility and progress. This bill strengthens our child care infrastructure by providing grants to lower costs for working families, enhance the child care workforce, and improve the quality of care in our communities.”

“At a time when families are struggling to find affordable child care so they can work and pay their bills, Republicans in Congress are making their priorities clear with 40,000 kids about to lose their child care to pay for another handout to billionaires. Taken together with the absolute gutting of HHS and the offices responsible for Head Start and child care, America’s child care crisis is on track to only grow worse,” Wyden said. “It doesn’t have to be this way, our bill invests in working families by making sure more families can get child care, and that new child care centers can be built to increase slots while also guaranteeing a living wage for the essential workers who staff them. That is where priorities should lie.”

“Parents shouldn’t have to choose between breaking the budget, cutting back their work hours, or settling for lower-quality care to make sure their kids have child care,” Warren said. “I am grateful for Senator Wyden’s and Representative Davis’ partnership and commitment to investing in child care so working parents have a fighting chance in our economy.”

The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act is supported by 50 organizations, including:  American Academy of Pediatrics; American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO); American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); American Federation of Teachers (AFT); Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy; Caring Across Generations; Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP); Child Care Aware of America; Child Care for Every Family Network; Communications Workers of America (CWA); Community Change Action; Early Care & Education Consortium (ECEC); Family Forward Oregon; Family Values at Work; First Children’s Finance; First Five Years Fund; First Focus Campaign for Children; Iowa Association for the Education of Young Children; KinderCare; Little Miracles Early Development Center; Maine Association for the Education of Young Children; Maine People’s Alliance; Maryland Association for the Education of Young Children (MDAEYC); Massachusetts Association for the Education of Young Children (MAAEYC); MomsRising; Montana Family Childcare Network; National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC); National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC); National Education Association (NEA); National Indian Child Care Association (NICCA); National Women’s Law Center; New Jersey Association for the Education of Young Children; NJ Communities United; OAEYC, Ohio Association for the Education of Young Children; ORAEYC Oregon Association for the Education of Young Children; Our Children Oregon; Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children; Pennsylvania Child Care Association; Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children; Prevent Child Abuse America; Rhode Island Association for the Education of Young Children; Save the Children; SEIU; South Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children (SCAEYC); Southwest Ohio Association for the Education of Young Children; Small Business Majority; Trying Together; Virginia Association for the Education of Young Children; Virginia Organizing; Wisconsin Early Childhood Association; and ZERO TO THREE.

A copy of the legislation is available HERE. 

A summary of the bill is available HERE.

Organizational Quotations: 

Center for Law and Social Policy

“The Building Child Care for a Better Future Act will make child care more affordable for families and invest in the workforce that makes it all possible. By ensuring sustainable and reliable funding and bolstering the supply of child care, we can build a stronger, more equitable child care sector. This legislation is an essential step toward a much-needed child care system that meets the diverse needs of all children and families.”  Stephanie Schmit, Director of Child Care and Early Education, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)

Child Care for Every Family Network

“Right now, this country is facing a serious child care crisis–parents are struggling to find or afford child care, child care workers are making poverty wages, and child care providers are struggling to keep their doors open and make ends meet. Republicans’ only proposal is to make this crisis even worse by cutting child care funding and putting more wealth in the hands of billionaires over supporting our families,” said Andrea Paluso and Erica Gallegos, Executive Directors of the Child Care for Every Family Network. “But there is another way. Senator Wyden and Warren’s Building Child Care for a Better Future Act will boost child care funding, instead of taking a hatchet to it. We are proud to endorse this critical bill that will invest in our child care supply, support the child care workforce, and help make child care easier to find and afford. The contrast couldn’t be clearer: support for care or support for cuts. Instead of non-stop Republican threats to cut child care, Congress must pass the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act.”

Early Care & Education Consortium

“As a national coalition of child care providers, education service providers, and state child care associations, ECEC is pleased to endorse the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act. This legislation recognizes that the child care workforce is the workforce behind the workforce—without well-qualified and compensated child care educators and staff, many parents cannot go to work with the comfort that their children are being educated and cared for in safe and healthy environments. Furthermore, the legislation takes needed steps to help provide support to providers that serve communities that are most in need of high-quality early education. The long-term investments proposed in the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act will better equip our nation’s child care system to serve all who rely on it every day, and support the continued growth of the American economy.” – Radha Mohan, Executive Director, Early Care & Education Consortium (ECEC)

Family Forward Oregon

“Child care is the workforce behind our workforce. It is essential infrastructure in our communities, and is an essential industry. We must fund child care just like libraries, schools, and other public services. When we invest in child care through the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act, we invest in our families, our economy and our future.” – Candice Vickers, Executive Director, Family Forward Oregon 

National Women’s Law Center

“At a time when President Trump and congressional Republicans are proposing dramatic cuts to child care, the Building Child Care for A Better Future Act provides meaningful investments that would make a real dent in addressing the child care crisis,” said Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women’s Law Center. “With families at a breaking point with the soaring costs of child care, we need real, sustained investment to make care more affordable and to invest in the early learning workforce. If Congress is serious about lowering child care costs, they’ll pass this bill instead of pretending that small tax credits—which provide only a fraction of relief that families need—are a real solution.”   

Prevent Child Abuse America

“Access to quality childcare alleviates parental stress, enabling parents to create positive home environments for their children,” saidMelissa Merrick, President and CEO of Chicago-based Prevent Child Abuse America. “This legislation, Building Child Care for a Better Future Act, addresses both the immediate needs of families, supporting working parents while strengthening the childcare workforce, and the broader goal of improving childcare access. When parents have the resources and supports they need to care for their children, we help parents foster positive home environments where their young children can thrive.”

ZERO TO THREE

“Child care is essential for parents who are continuing to struggle with long waitlists and skyrocketing costs. Providers are barely scraping by due to the ever-rising costs of providing safe and quality care,” said Samantha Cadet, Legislative Director for ZERO TO THREE. “ZERO TO THREE is proud to support the Building Child Care for a Better Future Act, which addresses the root issue of chronic underinvestment by increasing mandatory funding for child care so that states, tribes, and territories have the resources they need to build a child care infrastructure that works for everyone.”

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-02)

Recently, the Center for Effective Lawmaking released its analysis of the 118^th Congress and found Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) to be the most effective member of the Michigan Congressional Delegation in the U.S. House. The analysis also found during divided government in the last Congress, Huizenga exceeded expectations by outperforming the established benchmark by more than 60%. Overall, Congressman Huizenga scored in the top 8% of all House Members for the 118^th Congress. Upon reviewing the report, Congressman Huizenga released the following statement.

“It is an honor to be named the most effective member of the Michigan Delegation in the U.S. House,” said Congressman Bill Huizenga. “My top priority continues to be serving the residents of Southwest Michigan in the most efficient and effective way possible. While there is still much work to be done, I look forward to continuing to deliver on legislative solutions that make Southwest Michigan an even better place to live, work, and raise a family.”

Background:

The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is a joint partnership between the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University. Each Congress, CEL ranks lawmakers according to their effectiveness using a combination of 15 metrics on the bills they sponsor, how far they move through the legislative process, and how substantial their policy proposals are. Lawmakers are then assigned a Legislative Effectiveness Score (LES). The study provides evidence on how effective lawmaking continued to occur despite divided government and internal struggles within closely divided chambers of Congress.

The average score in both the House and the Senate was normalized to 1.0. Additionally, CEL establishes a benchmark for each member which is their expected LES based on their party, seniority, and committee position. Congressman Huizenga was given a benchmark of 1.481 but earned a score of 2.383 and was labeled as “exceed expectations.” Lawmakers “exceed expectations” when they outperform the benchmark by 50% or more. More information and scores for the entire Michigan Delegation can be found here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-02)

Today, Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) sent a letter to the IRS urging fair treatment of the research credit that many businesses across Southwest Michigan use to innovate and grow. Recently, the IRS has unnecessarily scrutinized the use of the research credit while also making the filing process itself more intrusive and overly complex. Specifically, the Biden Administration IRS implemented changes to filing Form 6765, placing undue burdens on businesses to prove they conducted research. As a result of changes to Form 6765, businesses will be forced to track employee time and expenses by “business component,” thereby increasing audit risks, requiring costly system upgrades, and ultimately reducing the value of the credit all while disincentivizing research and innovation.

“Innovators are the driving force behind America’s global competitiveness and quality of life at home. Consistent with President Trump’s pro-growth agenda, we cannot allow a government agency to stifle the groundbreaking research and growth of job creators. In addition to rescinding new Form 6765, I recommend that, in its overall approach, the IRS adhere to Congressional intent…” wrote Congressman Huizenga. “I am confident that the sentiment expressed in this letter would help ensure that the research credit truly serves its Congressionally intended purpose of fostering a competitive, innovative economy.”

Congressman Huizenga acknowledged his eagerness to work with President Trump’s IRS to address this matter, which if properly addressed, could incentivize large investments in critical research and development in the United States for wide range of industries including manufacturers, researchers, semiconductors, engineers, drug makers, designers, and any other business that would be eligible for this tax credit. The National Association of Manufacturers also issued a statement of support for Congressman Huizenga’s actions.

“R&D is the lifeblood of the manufacturing industry—and manufacturers perform 53% of all private-sector R&D in the U.S. Yet the industry’s ability to pursue life-changing and live-saving research is seriously threatened by new IRS compliance requirements that will make it more difficult to claim the R&D tax credit,” said Charles Crain, Managing Vice President of Policy, National Association of Manufacturers. “Manufacturers appreciate Rep. Huizenga’s leadership in calling on the IRS to rescind these damaging changes, and we encourage both Congress and the IRS to ensure that the tax code fully supports manufacturers’ efforts to drive innovation here in the U.S.”  

You can read Congressman Huizenga’s letter to the IRS here or below:

Acting Commissioner Krause:

I write to request that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rescind the new Form 6765, “Credit for Increasing Research Activities,” issued on December 12, 2024, and the associated instructions. Additionally, I must raise concerns about the IRS’s overall approach to administering the research tax credit, including how the IRS has been handling amended returns for research credit claims, conducting research credit audits, and taking research credit cases to court.

For decades, as Congress intended, American businesses’ use of the research credit has helped drive our nation’s leadership in innovation. Congress never intended for a government agency to stifle the groundbreaking research and growth of job creators. In fact, the Conference Agreement accompanying the 1999 extension of the research tax credit stated, “The conferees also are concerned about unnecessary and costly taxpayer recordkeeping burdens and reaffirm that eligibility for the credit is not intended to be contingent on meeting unreasonable recordkeeping requirements.”^[1] 

While the Internal Revenue Code and Treasury regulations echo this intent on various accounts, my constituent businesses—particularly in the manufacturing sector —continue to raise concerns about the IRS challenging, and in some cases litigating, the adequacy of taxpayers’ documentation to substantiate qualified research expenses. At a time when nearly every industry has faced rising input costs across the board, the IRS should not be seeking to make the research credit more difficult, time-consuming, and costly to claim.

The new Form 6765, originally issued during the Biden Administration, introduces new and extensive requirements to prove that a business’s activities qualify as research, track employee time at very granular levels, and document expenses to “business components.”  This places a heavy compliance cost on businesses of all sizes – from large operations to smaller ones seeking to grow. For example, new Sections E and G ask taxpayers to detail quantitative and qualitative information at a business component level, even though neither the Code nor the regulations require a taxpayer to provide qualified research expenses (QREs) by business component (“project”). Furthermore, it would be common for a given business to be developing hundreds or even thousands of business components annually.

The requirements in the new Form 6765 not only impose additional administrative hurdles, but also increase the likelihood of errors, resulting in potential audits or penalties. Businesses would now have to incur additional, significant expenditures for:

• Systems such as employee time tracking and project cost accounting for non-wage expenses, and
• External advisors to navigate these convoluted requirements, further reducing the net benefit of the credit.

Moreover, there would be a significant cost associated with the valuable time lost due to the added administrative burden of employees, such as scientists and engineers, having to enter related information into time tracking systems on a regular, recurring basis.

Innovators are the driving force behind America’s global competitiveness and quality of life at home. Consistent with President Trump’s pro-growth agenda, we cannot allow a government agency to stifle the groundbreaking research and growth of job creators. In addition to rescinding new Form 6765, I recommend that, in its overall approach, the IRS adhere to Congressional intent instead of focusing on litigating and challenging legitimate research credit claims – as it has done in the past. I am confident that the sentiment expressed in this letter would help ensure that the research credit truly serves its Congressionally intended purpose of fostering a competitive, innovative economy.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I stand ready to work with you to address these issues and I look forward to receiving your response.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Reprepsentative Kathy Castor (FL14)

TAMPA, Fla. – Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL-14) released the following statement on President Donald Trump’s shocking misunderstanding of tariffs:

“The President doesn’t seem to understand the economic squeeze families and small business owners are grappling with – and now his costly tariff scheme will make life more expensive for everyone.

“It’s a real kick in the teeth for Tampa Bay neighbors rebuilding from the hurricanes, as the cost of lumber and drywall will surge. The price of groceries, clothing, and cars will skyrocket under Trump’s taxes on everyday Americans. 

“It’s painful, unwise, and it could throw America into a recession. 

“Tampa Bay area businesses, particularly those involved in imports and exports at Port Tampa Bay, should brace for higher costs and volatile supply chains.

“Instead of imposing costly tariffs, Trump should be working with partners and allies in a bipartisan way to lower costs. Yet, everything he has done since his inauguration has driven up the cost of living and taken a hatchet to retirement accounts and savings.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Gus Bilirakis (FL-12)

Washington, DC – This week, U.S. Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX) re-introduced the Consensual Donation and Research Integrity Act, which will protect the dignity of those who donate their bodies to education or research. Specifically, the Act would create standards for registration, inspection, chain of custody, labeling and packing, and proper disposition.  It would also create a registration and tracking system for bodies and body parts donated for research, thus preventing body brokers and bad actors from taking advantage of donors and donor families.  When a family donates a loved ones’ organs or tissues for transplantation, the process is transparent and heavily regulated.  However, in comparison, there is currently no federal law — and few state laws — governing the process when a body is donated for use in medical research or education.  In almost every state, it remains legal to sell the human remains of adults, and worse, under current law, almost anyone — regardless of expertise — can dissect and sell human body parts.  Because of this, grisly abuses of donor bodies abound.

“This important legislation provides safeguards to ensure that human remains are disposed of in a manner that preserves the dignity and choices of the patient or next of kin,” said Rep. Bilirakis.  “The industry has been largely unregulated and sadly many families have been exploited for profit.  Our bill gives family members the peace of mind of knowing that their wishes are being honored.”  

“Families who choose to donate a loved one’s body for scientific research or educational use do so believing that they are benefitting others and that their loved ones will be treated with dignity and respect,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “Sadly, many families have been taken advantage of by a largely unregulated industry.  I am glad to partner with Congressman Bilirakis, Senator Murphy, and Senator Tillis to ensure that donor bodies are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve, while providing accountability and transparency.”

Currently, bodies and body parts ostensibly donated for medical research can be bought, sold, and leased again and again, making it extremely difficult without proper reporting requirements to consistently track what becomes of donors’ bodies, to ensure that they are handled with dignity, and to guarantee their return to their loved ones after cremation.  Brokers make money — anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 — by providing bodies and dissected parts to companies and institutions that specialize in advancing medicine and other trades through training, education, and research.  The Consensual Donation and Research Integrity Act of 2023 would transform the landscape of tissue and whole-body donation by preventing body brokers from taking advantage of the generosity of donors and donor families by directing anyone who acquires or transfers a human body or human body part for education, research, or the advancement of medical, dental, or mortuary science to register with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, maintain a complete record for each case, ensure proper label and packaging of the remains, and dispose of them by returning them to a donor’s relative or personal representative.

Following are a few examples of the treatment donor bodies have been subjected to due to the lack of regulation of the process, as reported by Reuters:

1. In 2016, more than 20 bodies donated to an Arizona broker were used in U.S. Army blast experiments — without the consent of the deceased or next of kin.  Some donors or their families had explicitly noted an objection to military experiments on consent forms. 

2. In Honolulu, police were called twice to storage facilities leased by body broker Bryan Avery in 2011 and 2012.  Both times, they found decomposing human remains, but both times, police concluded that Avery committed no crimes because no state law applied.

3. Health inspectors who visited Southern Nevada Donor Services, which offered grieving families free cremation in exchange for donating a loved one’s body to “advance medical studies,” found a man in medical scrubs holding a garden hose, thawing a frozen human torso in the midday sun.  As the man sprayed the remains, “bits of tissue and blood were washed into the gutters.”

The Consensual Donation and Research Integrity Act of 2025 is supported by the National Funeral Directors Association, the world’s leading and largest funeral service association, serving more than 20,000 individual members who represent nearly 11,000 funeral homes in the United States and 49 countries around the world.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Gus Bilirakis (FL-12)

U.S. Congressman Gus Bilirakis invites local middle and high school students and their parents to attend his upcoming U.S. Service Academy Night featuring presentations by each of the five U.S. Service Academies.  Participants will learn about the Congressional nomination process and about how to prepare for a successful appointment.  Information about ROTC/college scholarship opportunities to will also be shared.  “Service Academies offer an elite education to the best and brightest students who are ready to make a commitment to serve their country in the Armed Forces.  The Service Academy Night provides students and families with the best information possible about how to prepare for this unique learning opportunity,” said Congressman Gus Bilirakis.  

For more details, please see the flyer below.

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

This week, Reps. Ron Estes (R-Kansas) and Mike Thompson (D-California) reintroduced the Financing Our Energy Future Act. This bipartisan bill gives renewable energy projects access to master limited partnerships (MLP), a tax structure currently only available to oil, gas and coal projects.
 
“Americans benefit from a variety of energy options, and our country is stronger when we have an all-of-the-above energy strategy that provides reliability and consumer choice,” said Rep. Estes. “The Financing Our Energy Future Act will provide consistency among energy sectors by opening up the existing tax structure of master limited partnerships (MLP) to renewable energy projects, encouraging growth, creating jobs, and strengthening American energy dominance. Our tax code shouldn’t be picking winners and losers – especially in American energy production – and this bill provides parity for all U.S. energy projects that will bolster production and encourage market-based competitiveness.”
 
“The Financing Our Energy Future Act gives renewable energy projects access to tax incentives currently only available to oil, gas, and coal projects,” said Rep. Thompson. “This legislation is a critical step in increasing renewable energy production and delivering investments in American energy. I’m pleased to work with Rep. Estes on this bill.”
 
A master limited partnership is a business structure taxed as a partnership but whose ownership interests are traded like corporate stock on a market. By statute, MLPs have only been available to investors in energy portfolios for oil, natural gas, coal extraction and pipeline projects. This bill levels the playing field to make renewable energy sources more competitive for private capital investments.
 
Newly eligible energy resources under this legislation would include solar, wind, marine and hydrokinetic energy, fuel cells, energy storage, combined heat and power, biomass, waste heat to power, renewable fuels, biorefineries, energy-efficient buildings and carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Chris Coons (D-Delaware) introduced companion legislation in the Senate earlier this year.
 
Click here to download the legislation.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09)

Washington, DC — Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee Ranking Member Marcy Kaptur (OH-09); Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (CT-03); Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06); Energy and Commerce Energy Subcommittee Ranking Member Kathy Castor (FL-14); Science, Space, and Technology Committee Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (CA-18); Science, Space, and Technology Energy Subcommittee Ranking Member Deborah Ross (NC-02) sent a letter to United States Department of Energy (DOE) Acting Inspector General Sarah Nelson requesting an investigation into all financial assistance and contracts including any cancelled awards and contracts.

In their letter, Kaptur, DeLauro, Pallone, Castor, Lofgren, and Ross raise concerns that DOE’s actions are politically motivated and will immediately contribute to rising energy costs for families and businesses.

“It is widely understood that the integrity of DOE’s contract and award processes is critical to fostering an environment of fair competition and advancing national energy goals. Competitive-based awards ensure that federal funds are allocated to projects that offer the best value to the taxpayers, based on merit and the technical and financial qualifications of applicants,” write the lawmakers. “However, the recent comprehensive portfolio review and the potential resulting cancellations of various awards and contracts appear to violate this principle by undermining the fairness of the process. It appears that some projects previously deemed worthy of funding are being cancelled without adequate justification, and in some cases, with no clear rationale other than administrative convenience.”

The lawmakers highlight recent reports that the Trump Administration’s award and contract cancellations target states and districts led by Democrats and note that this would be a serious abuse of power: “The politicization of financial assistance and contract awards is deeply concerning, as it could harm not only the progress of critical energy initiatives but also erode public trust in the impartiality of federal agencies. As a nation, we must ensure that such decisions are made based on objective criteria rather than political considerations.”

“Unfortunately, DOE’s actions create mass uncertainty, will cause energy prices to rise, risk good-paying jobs in communities across the country, and undermine the pursuit of energy dominance,” the lawmakers conclude, before demanding an inquiry into their grave concerns.

Full text of the letter is available by clicking here and below:

Dear Acting Inspector General Nelson,

We are writing to formally request an investigation into the Department of Energy’s (DOE or the Department) recent comprehensive portfolio review of all financial assistance and contracts, as well as the subsequent award and contract cancellations that may occur. It is our belief that these actions not only undermine the spirit of competitive-based awards but also raise significant concerns regarding potential political motivations behind the targeting of projects in Democratic-leaning states and districts. DOE’s actions to delay these programs will immediately contribute to rising energy costs for American families and businesses. These actions are also a dereliction of the Department’s responsibility to carry out duly enacted laws.

It is widely understood that the integrity of DOE’s contract and award processes is critical to fostering an environment of fair competition and advancing national energy goals. Competitive-based awards ensure that federal funds are allocated to projects that offer the best value to the taxpayers, based on merit and the technical and financial qualifications of applicants. That is reflected in both law and regulations. Section 989 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 states that “research, development, demonstration, and commercial application activities carried out by the Department should be awarded using competitive procedures, to the maximum extent practicable.” And the Department’s financial assistance regulations (2 CFR § 910.126) state that “DOE shall solicit applications for Federal financial assistance in a manner which provides for the maximum amount of competition feasible.”

However, the recent comprehensive portfolio review and the potential resulting cancellations of various awards and contracts appear to violate this principle by undermining the fairness of the process. It appears that some projects previously deemed worthy of funding are being cancelled without adequate justification, and in some cases, with no clear rationale other than administrative convenience.

Troubling reports have also surfaced suggesting that the review and subsequent cancellations may be politically motivated, targeting projects in Democratic states and districts. If this is the case, it would represent a serious abuse of power and an attempt to manipulate federal funding for partisan purposes. Additionally, these actions and the pattern of decision making could be in violation of the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C. 7323(a)(4)) that restricts any federal employee to “knowingly solicit or discourage the participation in any political activity of any person who…has an application for any compensation, grant, contract, ruling, license, permit, or certificate pending before the employing office of such employee.”

The politicization of financial assistance and contract awards is deeply concerning, as it could harm not only the progress of critical energy initiatives but also erode public trust in the impartiality of federal agencies. As a nation, we must ensure that such decisions are made based on objective criteria rather than political considerations.

Given the significant public interest and the potential ramifications of these actions, we request that your office initiate a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the comprehensive portfolio review, the decision-making process that may lead to contract cancellations, and whether any political bias influenced these decisions.

It is crucial that DOE’s actions be transparent and fully accountable so that all stakeholders can be confident that public funds are being used in the best interests of the nation. Unfortunately, DOE’s actions create mass uncertainty, will cause energy prices to rise, risk good-paying jobs in communities across the country, and undermine the pursuit of energy dominance.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. We look forward to your prompt response and the initiation of an inquiry into these serious concerns.

 

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