Congress Uncovered: Week of 1/13/2025
Weekly Report Covering the Actions of Congress from 1/13 to 1/17. All summaries are quoted or paraphrased from the Congress.gov website and arguments are extrapolated from floor debates.
U.S House
*Rule and procedural votes are not included unless it significantly alters legislative process
**Also does not include legislation that renames federal facilities or designation resolutions (such as renaming post offices or commemorating a historical event, among other similar things)
***Debate and arguments are included for all bills under regular order and any bill under suspension of the rules that had organized opposition that spoke against it on the floor during debate
Bills Passed via Roll Call Vote Under Suspension of the Rules (2/3 Needed)
H.R.192 - Amtrak Executive Bonus Disclosure Act
Summary: This bill requires Amtrak to publicly disclose the annual base pay and bonus compensation paid to an Amtrak executive in a required annual report to Congress.
Specifically, Amtrak must incorporate into the annual report the annual base pay and any bonus compensation paid to a member of the executive leadership team. This must include the criteria and metrics used to determine any bonus compensation.
Further, Amtrak must make the annual report available on Amtrak's public website.
Vote: Republicans: 206 Yeas
Democrats: 201 Yeas
Total: 407 Yeas
H.R.152 - Federal Disaster Assistance Coordination Act
Summary: This bill authorizes a study regarding streamlining and consolidating information collection and preliminary damage assessments
Vote: Republicans: 200 Yeas, 5 Nays
Democrats: 205 Yeas
Total: 405 Yeas, 5 Nays
H.R.153 - Post-Disaster Assistance Online Accountability Act
Summary: This bill provides for an online repository for certain reporting requirements for recipients of Federal disaster assistance
Vote: Republicans: 217 Yeas
Democrats: 209 Yeas
Total: 426 Yeas
H.R.164 - POWER Act of 2025
Summary: This bill authorizes certain federal agencies to provide certain essential assistance for hazard mitigation for electric utilities
Vote: Republicans: 209 Yeas, 2 Nays
Democrats: 210 Yeas
Total: 419 Yeas, 2 Nays
H.R.144 - Tennessee Valley Authority Salary Transparency Act
Summary: This bill expands reporting requirements for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). TVA is a government corporation that provides electricity in Tennessee and in portions of several surrounding states. It also provides flood control, navigation, and land management services for the Tennessee River system.
The bill reinstates the requirement for TVA to file an annual financial statement and report with Congress in March. (The requirement was terminated by the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995.)
The bill also modifies the requirement that the report include the names, salaries, and duties of employees earning more than $1,500 a year. Under the bill, this information is only required for employees earning more than the maximum rate of basic pay for grade GS-13 of the General Schedule.
Vote: Republicans: 214 Yeas
Democrats: 209 Nays
Total: 423 Yeas
Bills Passed Via Regular Order (Majority Needed)
H.R.28 - Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025
Summary: The bill provides that it is a violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for federally funded education programs or activities to operate, sponsor, or facilitate athletic programs or activities that allow individuals of the male sex to participate in programs or activities that are designated for women or girls. (Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs or activities, including in public elementary and secondary schools and in colleges and universities.) Under the bill, sex is based on an individual's reproductive biology and genetics at birth.
The bill does not prohibit male individuals from training or practicing with programs or activities for women or girls as long as such training or practice does not deprive any female of corresponding opportunities or benefits.
The Government Accountability Office must report on the benefits for women or girls in single-sex sports that would be lost as a result of male participation. In particular, the report must document the negative psychological, developmental, participatory, and sociological effects of male participation on girls.
Arguments: Supporters of the bill, all of the Republicans with very few Democrats, argue that this bill protects the promise of title IX by protecting the integrity of women’s sports. Allowing transgender women is unfair to biological women as they have superior physical attributes.
Opponents of the bill, almost all of the Democratic Caucus, argue that local sports organizations should be in charge of their regulations. Certain states allow transgenders to compete, and there are no problems in those states. This policy is damaging and discriminatory to transgender athletes. It also violates their safety and medical privacy.
Vote: Republicans: 216 Yeas
Democrats: 2 Yeas, 206 Nays, 1 Present
Total: 218 Yeas, 206 Nays
H.R.33 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide special rules for the taxation of certain residents of Taiwan with income from sources within the United States.
Summary: This bill establishes special rules for the taxation of residents of Taiwan with income from sources within the United States. This includes the reduction of the rate of withholding of taxes, the application of permanent establishment rules, treatment of income from employment, and the determination of the residency of citizens of Taiwan.
Vote: Republicans: 213 Yeas, 1 Nay
Democrats: 210 Yeas
Total: 423 Yeas, 1 Nay
H.R.30 - Preventing Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act
Summary: This bill establishes certain criminal grounds for making non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) inadmissible and expands the crimes for which a non-U.S. national is deportable.
First, the bill establishes that a non-U.S. national is inadmissible if the individual has admitted to or is convicted of acts constituting the essential elements of stalking, child abuse, child neglect, child abandonment, a sex offense, conspiracy to commit a sex offense, a violation of certain protection orders, or domestic violence (including physical or sexual abuse or a pattern of coercive behavior when it occurs within certain close relationships).
Next, the bill establishes additional grounds for deportation. Under current law, a non-U.S. national is deportable for certain criminal convictions, including domestic violence, stalking, and child abuse. The bill makes any sex offense (including crimes against minors) or conspiracy to commit a sex offense a basis for deportation. The bill also expands the domestic violence crimes that make a non-U.S. national deportable to include physical or sexual abuse or a pattern of coercive behavior when it occurs within certain close relationships.
Arguments: Supporters of the bill, all of the Republicans and about 1/3 of the Democrats, argue that this bill is needed to address the flow of criminals across the southern border. This bill would make it easier to deport illegal immigrants if they commit certain crimes.
Opponents of this bill, 2/3 of Democrats, argue this bill is redundant and the law already leads to the deportation or rejection of foreigners who committed sex crimes. They also argue that victims of domestic violence who defend themselves could be rejected or deported under this law.
Vote: Republicans: 213 Yeas
Democrats: 61 Yeas, 145 Nays
Total: 274 Yeas, 145 Nays
U.S Senate
To nobody’s surprise, the Senate passed no bills this week. However, there will be a final vote the following week on its version of the Laken Riley Act, and the Senate held many confirmation hearings on Trump’s nominees.