Railroad Responsibility Act of 2025This bill provides states with the authority to adopt or enact any law, regulation, order, or other requirement limiting the duration that a railroad carrier may block a grade rail crossing. Specifically, this bill states that federal transportation laws do not preempt a state from adopting or enacting these limits. As background, state and federal courts have generally found that state laws regarding obstructed crossings are preempted by one or more federal laws, thereby rendering the state laws unenforceable.
No Subsidies for Wealthy Universities ActThis bill limits the indirect costs that are allowable under federal research awards to institutions of higher education (IHEs) with endowments above specified thresholds. (Generally, indirect costs represent expenses that are not specific to a research project but are needed to maintain the infrastructure and administrative support for federally funded research.)Specifically, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) must annually collect information regarding the endowments of each IHE that has entered into a program participation agreement with the Department of Education.With this collected information, NCES must identify and make lists of (1) each IHE with an endowment of more than $5 billion, and (2) each IHE with an endowment of more than $2 billion (but not more than $5 billion). NCES must submit these lists to the Office of Management and Budget, which must then distribute the lists to federal agencies, Congress, and the public.The bill establishes the following limits on the indirect costs allowable under federal research awards:for an IHE with an endowment of more than $5 billion, the IHE is prohibited from using these awards for indirect costs;for an IHE with an endowment of more than $2 billion (but not more than $5 billion), the IHE is limited to an indirect cost rate of 8%; andfor all other IHEs, an indirect cost rate of 15%.The Government Accountability Office must annually report to Congress on indirect cost reimbursement on federal research awards for IHEs.
This resolution elects Representative Judy Chu of California to the Committee on the Budget, ranking immediately after Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington.
This bill prohibits the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) from establishing or maintaining a value pricing program under the FHWA's Value Pricing Pilot Program that includes value pricing, congestion pricing, or cordon pricing. In general, value pricing, also referred to as congestion pricing, includes a variety of strategies to manage congestion on highways and surface streets (e.g., charging drivers on congested roadways during peak periods). Cordon pricing is a form of congestion pricing that includes a zone-based pricing system that involves either variable or fixed charges to drive within or into a congested area within a city.
High-Speed Rail Authority: project update report.
End Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Providers ActThis bill prohibits federal funding for entities, or their affiliates, that perform abortions, provide referrals for abortions, or provide funding to others that perform abortions. It provides exceptions for abortions (1) in the case of rape or incest, or (2) when a physician certifies there is a danger of death to the woman without an abortion. The bill’s prohibition applies to any federal statutory law adopted after the bill’s effective date, unless such law contains an explicit exemption.
Protect Local Farms ActThis bill provides that the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) preempts any state law that establishes a maximum workweek (i.e., the maximum number of hours an employee is permitted to work without receiving overtime pay) of less than 60 hours for agricultural employees. Under the FLSA, agricultural employees are generally exempt from federal overtime requirements. However, federal overtime requirements currently do not preempt state laws that provide greater protections to employees.
Protecting Homeowners from Disaster Act of 2025 This bill repeals the limit on the itemized tax deduction for unreimbursed personal casualty losses. Specifically, the bill repeals a provision that generally limits the deduction for tax years 2018-2025 to losses that are attributable to a federally declared disaster. The bill applies to losses sustained after 2024.
Local Access to Courts Act or LACAThis bill adds College Station to the list of places where court must be held in the Galveston Division of the Southern District of Texas. Additionally, the bill adds El Centro to the list of places where court must be held in the Southern District of California.
Protecting Infrastructure Investments for Rural America Act This bill modifies the definition of rural area that is used for the Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program and adds provisions for small communities.As background, the grant program supports projects that improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas. Eligible applicants for the grant program include states, regional transportation planning organizations, local governments, and tribal governments.For purposes of the program, the bill defines rural area as an area outside an urbanized area that has a population of 30,000 or less. Current law requires a rural area to be outside of an urbanized area with a population of over 200,000.The bill includes provisions for small communities (i.e., an area outside an urbanized area and that has a population of 5,000 or less). The bill sets the maximum federal cost-share at 90% for project grants carried out in a small community. The Department of Transportation (DOT) must use at least 5% of the program's annual funds to provide grants for projects in small communities. The bill also removes the prohibition against DOT using more than 10% of program funds for grants that are under $25 million.Further, program grants may be used for highway, road, bridge, or tunnel projects that would benefit the economic development or quality of life for citizens of the local community.The bill also specifies that the program's goals include the generation of economic growth and development in rural areas.