This weekend, Representative Cori Bush (D-Mo) protested the expiration of the Center for Disease Control’s eviction moratorium by sleeping on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. On Saturday night, the CDC’s ban on evictions expired, threatening renters across the country with the possibility of eviction. The moratorium had been put in place 11 months ago […]
Biden Announces Plan to Protect “Long Covid” Patients Under Federal Disability Law on 31st Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act
On Monday, President Joe Biden honored the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act by announcing a new initiative to qualify “long Covid” symptoms as disability and grant Americans with “long Covid” protections under the ADA. People who suffer from “long Covid” experience serious and ongoing health issues that originated from a previous Covid-19 […]
Representative Joyce Beatty Arrested at Voting Rights Protest on Capitol Hill
On Thursday, Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, was arrested while protesting for voting rights in a Senate office building. U.S. Capitol Police arrested Rep. Beatty and eight other activists who were demonstrating in the atrium of the Hart Senate Office Building. In a statement, police said they arrested the protestors […]
House Subcommittee Advances HHS Spending Bill without Hyde Amendment
On Monday, the House Appropriations Labor and Health and Human Services subcommittee advanced a spending bill for the Department of Health and Human Services that does not include the Hyde Amendment. The 1976 Hyde Amendment prohibits the use of federal funds, specifically Medicaid, for abortion care. It disproportionately affects women of color and low-income women […]
Gender Equity in Education Act Reintroduced in House and Senate to Advance Title IX’s Implementation
Last Wednesday, Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA), reintroduced the Patsy T. Mink and Louise M. Slaughter Gender Equity in Education Act (GEEA) in Congress. The House and Senate versions of the bill, H.R.4097 and S.2186, would support the implementation of Title IX by providing resources, funding, and training to reduce […]
Voting Rights Bill Blocked by Filibuster
Senate Republicans blocked an expansive voting rights bill with a filibuster on Tuesday despite Democrats’ efforts to move the bill forward. The For the People Act is one of the most comprehensive pieces of voting rights legislation to be introduced in years. It would expand and protect voting rights, create new campaign finance rules, and […]
Senate Approves Legislation to Make Juneteenth a Federal Holiday
Yesterday, the Senate unanimously passed a measure to make Juneteenth, the day that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, a federal holiday. The bill will now be sent to the House of Representatives for approval. If passed by the House and subsequently signed into law by President Biden, June 19th will be […]
Senate Republicans Block the Paycheck Fairness Act
On Tuesday, Republicans in the Senate blocked the debate of the Paycheck Fairness Act, a bill aimed to eliminate pay discrimination against women. If passed, the Paycheck Fairness Act would require employers to demonstrate that any pay disparities between men and women are related to the job. It would also give more power to those […]
Members of Congress Reintroduce the Women’s Health Protection Act
On Tuesday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Conn.), and Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas) reintroduced the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) in the Senate and the House, with 45 cosponsors and 179 cosponsors, respectively. The Women’s Health Protection Act was originally introduced […]
Biden Releases Historic $6 Trillion Budget, Eliminates the Hyde Amendment
On Friday, President Biden released a bold new $6 trillion federal budget for fiscal year 2022 aimed at growing the economy as the country recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, and which for the first time since the Clinton administration does not include the Hyde Amendment, a provision which prevents federal funds from being used for […]
Senate Confirms Kristen Clarke to Lead Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department
On Tuesday, the Senate voted to confirm Kristen Clarke as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Justice Department. Clarke is the first woman and the first Black woman to lead the division. The Senate voted 51-48, with Sen. Susan Collins as the only Republican to vote in favor of her nomination. Clarke was […]
HHS Announces Grant for Domestic Violence Survivors Through American Rescue Plan
On Monday, the Department of Health and Human Services awarded $200 million to support the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) Program grantees, funded through the American Rescue Plan. The Department’s funding is through the Family and Youth Services Bureau at the Administration for Children, Youth, and Families. These programs provide crisis intervention and […]
Military Sexual Assault Bill Gains Bipartisan Support in the Senate
A new bill that would change the way sexual assault cases are handled in the military is gaining bipartisan support in the Senate and could soon become law. The Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act was introduced last month by New York Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and would “professionalize how the military prosecutes serious crimes by moving […]
Congresswoman Maloney, Congressional Maternity Care Caucus, and Black Maternal Health Caucus Co-Chairs Introduce Bill to Protect Breastfeeding Rights to Working Moms
On Tuesday, Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, with Congressional Maternity Care Caucus co-chairs Congresswomen Jaime Herrera Beutler and Lucille Roybal-Allard and co-chairs of the Black Maternal Health Caucus Alma Adams and Lauren Underwood, introduced the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections (PUMP) for Nursing Mothers Act. The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act will close a coverage gap in […]
Attorney General Merrick Garland Asks Congress for $1 Billion for Office of Violence Against Women
On Tuesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland asked Congress for over $35 billion in funding for the Justice Department, including $1 billion for the Office of Violence Against Women (OVW). The OVW assists state, local, territorial, and tribal programs in working to end gender-based violence. In addition to the $1 billion, $120 million is provided to […]
Senators on Both Sides of the Aisle Express Concern About Women’s Rights Post- US Withdrawal from Afghanistan
In a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing this week, senators from across the political spectrum expressed concerns about the security situation in Afghanistan post- U.S. and NATO withdrawal this year. Members also appeared tense in their questioning of the U.S. government’s special envoy for peace in Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad. Committee members repeatedly expressed their concerns […]
Over 400 Businesses Sign onto Coalition in Support of the Equality Act
Several hundred businesses that collectively employ 14.6 million people in the U.S. have signed onto a coalition formed by the Human Rights Campaign to support the passage of the Equality Act. The Equality Act creates anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people across a host of areas including employment, housing, credit, education, public services, federal programs, and […]
Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill Denouncing Anti-Asian Discrimination
On Thursday, the Senate passed with a strong bipartisan majority a bill denouncing discrimination against Asian communities in the US. The bill also creates a new position at the Department of Justice to expedite reviews of potential COVID-related hate crimes. The vote was 94-1, with lone opposition from Missouri Senator Josh Hawley. The bill was […]
House Votes to Pass DC Statehood Bill
On Thursday, the House voted 216-208 to grant statehood to Washington, DC. This move is the first time a Congressional chamber has approved establishing DC as a state. The legislation renames the capital as Washington, Douglass Commonwealth, named for abolitionist Frederick Douglass, granting it two senators and a voting representative in the House. DC currently […]
House Judiciary Committee Votes on Bill to Establish Commission on Reparations for Slavery
Last week, legislators in the House Judiciary Committee voted to advance a bill that would establish a commission to propose ideas on how to redress the effects of slavery in the U.S. H.R. 40, sponsored by Texas Representative Sheila Jackson Lee and named after the unfulfilled promise of “40 acres and a mule” for emancipated […]
