The world's political record
Records whose title is actually about this topic. Use a country filter if the list is still too broad.
8,390 records
United States · United States Congress · 17 August 2026
Original: Wijziging van de Wet milieubeheer in verband met de invoering van de verplichting tot het stellen van milieuprestatie-eisen in aanbestedingen voor grond-, weg- en waterbouwwerken
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 17 August 2026
Translated from Dutch
Amendment to the Environmental Management Act in connection with the introduction of the obligation to set environmental performance requirements in tenders for earthworks, road and hydraulic engineering works
Original: Wijziging van de Energiewet, de Wet belastingen op milieugrondslag en de Wet op de accijns, ter implementatie van het EU-wetgevingspakket inzake het verbeteren van de opzet van de elektriciteitsmarkt van de Unie en de verbetering van de bescherming van de Unie tegen marktmanipulatie op de groothandelsmarkt voor energie (Implementatiewet EMD-pakket)
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 17 August 2026
Translated from Dutch
Amendment of the Energy Act, the Environmental Tax Act and the Excise Duty Act, implementing the EU legislative package on improving the design of the Union's electricity market and improving the Union's protection against market manipulation on the wholesale energy market (EMD Package Implementation Act)
United States · United States Congress · 14 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 14 August 2026
Original: Tweede beleidsreactie op onderzoek Universiteit Utrecht ‘Naar een robuuste implementatie van het Verdrag van Aarhus?’
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 14 August 2026
Translated from Dutch
Tweede beleidsresponse to onderzoek Universiteit Utrecht ‘Naar een robuuste implementatie van het treaty van Aarhus?’
United States · United States Congress · 14 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 14 August 2026
Farm Equipment Safety Act This bill provides that emissions standards under the Clean Air Act for nonroad engines and nonroad vehicles do not apply to nonroad engines and nonroad vehicles that are used for agricultural purposes.
Original: Motie van het lid Boomsma over de beoordelingssystematiek voor vogelsoorten betrekken bij het bepalen van de staat van instandhouding van algemeen voorkomende diersoorten
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 14 August 2026
Translated from Dutch
Motion by member Boomsma on including the assessment system for bird species in determining the conservation status of common animal species
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 14 August 2026
Natuur en Milieu Gelderland over Lelystad Airport
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 2026
Housing for the 21st Century Act This bill revises federal housing programs, including by expanding available financing for affordable housing and providing grants for planning and community development activities. For example, the bill increases the statutory maximum loan limits for mortgage insurance programs administered by the Federal Housing Administration for multifamily homes and requires the use of a more specific inflation index for such loans. The bill also increases the maximum eligible income for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD's) HOME Investment Partnerships Program (grants to states and localities to support housing for low-income households) and establishes a grant program to assist regional, state, and local entities with strategies to support affordable housing. In addition, the bill exempts certain housing-related activities from the environmental review process, including certain construction, improvement, or rehabilitation of residential buildings; excludes veterans' disability benefits from being considered as income for purposes of determining eligibility for the Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) program; establishes a pilot program to provide grants to public housing agencies (PHAs) and other owners of federally assisted housing to test the efficacy of temperature sensors to support compliance with temperature requirements; eliminates the requirement that manufactured homes must be constructed with a permanent chassis; and authorizes HUD to conduct performance reviews of organizations that provide housing counseling services. The bill also expands oversight of HUD and PHAs, such as by requiring PHAs to post information about contracts on their websites. For more information about this bill, see CRS Report R48849 .
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 2026
Space Commerce Advisory Committee Act This bill requires the Office of Space Commerce to establish a Commercial Space Activity Advisory Committee to provide information and recommendations on nongovernmental space activities and promoting a robust and innovative commercial space sector. Among other duties, the committee is directed to identify challenges to the U.S. commercial space sector and to review best practices for commercial space entities with respect to avoiding harmful contamination of the Moon and other celestial bodies and adverse impacts to the Earth’s environment from extraterrestrial matter. The committee must be comprised of representatives from varying fields with significant experience in the commercial space industry. The committee must terminate ten years after it is established.
Original: Het voornemen van de provincie Noord-Brabant om natuurvergunningen van vijf legaal opererende pluimveebedrijven in te trekken naar aanleiding van een intrekkingsverzoek van Mobilisation for the Environment (MOB)
Netherlands · House of Representatives · 13 August 2026
Translated from Dutch
Het voornemen van de provincie Noord-Brabant om natuurvergunningen van vijf legaal opererende pluimveebedrijven in te trekken further to een intrekkingsverzoek van Mobilisation for the Environment (MOB)
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
Southcentral Foundation Land Transfer Act of 2025 This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convey approximately 3.4 acres in Anchorage, Alaska, to the Southcentral Foundation (SCF) for use in connection with health and social services programs. The conveyance must be made by warranty deed. The conveyance may not (1) require any consideration (such as payment) from the SCF for the property; (2) impose any obligation, term, or condition on the SCF relating to that property; or (3) allow for any U.S. reversionary interest in the property. HHS must be accorded any easement or access to the property as may be reasonably necessary to satisfy any retained obligation or liability of HHS. The bill prohibits the SCF from being liable for certain environmental contamination that occurred on or before the date on which the property is conveyed to the SCF. In turn, HHS may not be liable for any contamination that occurred after the date that the SCF controlled, occupied, and used the property.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
Southcentral Foundation Land Transfer Act of 2025 This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convey approximately 3.4 acres in Anchorage, Alaska, to the Southcentral Foundation (SCF) for use in connection with health and social services programs. The conveyance must be made by warranty deed. The conveyance may not (1) require any consideration (such as payment) from the SCF for the property; (2) impose any obligation, term, or condition on the SCF relating to that property; or (3) allow for any U.S. reversionary interest in the property. HHS must be accorded any easement or access to the property as may be reasonably necessary to satisfy any retained obligation or liability of HHS. The bill prohibits the SCF from being liable for certain environmental contamination that occurred on or before the date on which the property is conveyed to the SCF. In turn, HHS may not be liable for any contamination that occurred after the date that the SCF controlled, occupied, and used the property.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
Northern Border Security Enhancement and Review Act This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to regularly perform a threat analysis of the northern U.S. border. The analysis must be performed every three years and include terroristic and criminal threats, recent changes in apprehensions, and improvements needed to prevent terrorism and reduce criminal activity. DHS must update its northern border strategy not later than September 2, 2026, and every five years thereafter, incorporating the results from the latest threat analysis. DHS must also provide a classified briefing to the appropriate congressional committees. U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations (AMO) must develop performance metrics to assess the AMO’s effectiveness at securing the northern border between ports of entry in air and maritime environments.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 2026
Lower Costs for Everyday Americans Act This bill reauthorizes and establishes programs and requirements regarding health, commerce, and the environment. The bill reauthorizes and expands programs for health care, including by allowing individuals age 65 and over with a medically improved disability to qualify for Medicaid; extending payment increases for certain providers under Medicare, including physicians and rural hospitals; extending Medicare coverage of certain telehealth services; requiring pharmacy benefit managers to remit 100% of rebates for prescription drugs to group health plans; reauthorizing programs supporting health care in underserved communities, including the National Health Service Corps; expanding and reauthorizing programs for public health emergency preparedness and response, including pandemic preparedness; expanding and reauthorizing programs for prevention and treatment of certain conditions, including substance use disorders, traumatic brain injuries, and sickle cell disease; and expanding the Food and Drug Administration’s authority regarding research on rare pediatric diseases. The bill also establishes requirements relating to commerce, including by prohibiting nonconsensual online publication of intimate visual depictions of individuals, requiring manufacturers of internet-connected devices to disclose whether the device has a camera or microphone prior to purchase, banning products containing 10% or more of sodium nitrite by weight, and requiring additional disclosures relating to the prices of concert tickets and hotel rooms. Additionally, the bill establishes and reauthorizes programs relating to the environment, including grants for community recycling systems, drinking water infrastructure, and reducing diesel emissions. It also allows gasoline that is blended with 10% to 15% ethanol to be sold year-round.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule titled Waste Emissions Charge for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems: Procedures for Facilitating Compliance, Including Netting and Exemptions and published on November 18, 2024. The rule outlines compliance requirements under the Methane Emissions Reduction Program. Under the program, the EPA collects an annual charge on emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases from entities in the oil and gas sector if their emissions exceed specified waste emissions thresholds.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule titled Waste Emissions Charge for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems: Procedures for Facilitating Compliance, Including Netting and Exemptions and published on November 18, 2024. The rule outlines compliance requirements under the Methane Emissions Reduction Program. Under the program, the EPA collects an annual charge on emissions of methane and other greenhouse gases from the oil and gas sector if the emissions exceed specified waste emissions thresholds.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), issued on December 9, 2024, and related to the record of decision (ROD) for the program that leases, develops, produces, and transports oil and gas in and from the Coastal Plain program area within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The 2024 ROD that is being nullified by this resolution replaced the 2020 ROD that made all of the approximately 1.6 million acres of the program area available for oil and gas leasing. The 2024 ROD adopted Alternative D2 in the 2024 Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, which made approximately 1.2 million acres unavailable for leasing or exploration in order to protect and conserve resources and certain uses in these areas. However, the 2024 ROD requires the statutory minimum of 400,000 acres to be made available for oil and gas leasing in a specified lease sale, subject to certain stipulations and operating procedures. Under current law, those acres must be located in the areas with the highest potential for the discovery of hydrocarbons.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency notice titled California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty and Maintenance Provisions; Advanced Clean Trucks; Zero Emission Airport Shuttle; Zero-Emission Power Train Certification; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision (88 Fed. Reg. 20688) and published on April 6, 2023. Among other elements, the notice grants the California Air Resources Board request for a waiver several of its regulations, including the Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty Regulations and Maintenance Provisions. (Under the Clean Air Act, California may seek waivers of the preemption prohibiting states from enacting certain emission standards.)
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency notice titled California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty and Maintenance Provisions; Advanced Clean Trucks; Zero Emission Airport Shuttle; Zero-Emission Power Train Certification; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision (88 Fed. Reg. 20688) and published on April 6, 2023. Among other elements, the notice grants the California Air Resources Board request for a waiver several of its regulations, including the Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty Regulations and Maintenance Provisions. (Under the Clean Air Act, California may seek waivers of the preemption prohibiting states from enacting certain emission standards.)
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency notice titled California State Motor Vehicle and Engine and Nonroad Engine Pollution Control Standards; The ‘Omnibus’ Low NOX Regulation; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision (90 Fed. Reg. 643) and published on January 6, 2025. Among other elements, the notice grants the California Air Resources Board request for a waiver for its Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Omnibus Low NOX regulations. (Under the Clean Air Act, California may seek waivers of the preemption prohibiting states from enacting certain emission standards.)
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
This joint resolution nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency notice titled California State Motor Vehicle and Engine and Nonroad Engine Pollution Control Standards; The ‘Omnibus’ Low NOX Regulation; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision (90 Fed. Reg. 643) and published on January 6, 2025. Among other elements, the notice grants the California Air Resources Board request for a waiver for its Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Omnibus Low NOX regulations. (Under the Clean Air Act, California may seek waivers of the preemption prohibiting states from enacting certain emission standards.)
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
Manatee Protection Act of 2025 This bill requires the Department of the Interior to include the West Indian manatee ( Trichechus manatus ) in the endangered species list and give the species protections provided to endangered species.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2025 or the BEACH Act of 2025 This bill reauthorizes through FY2029 and expands an existing program of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that awards grants to states and local governments to (1) monitor the water quality of coastal recreational waters adjacent to beaches or similar points of access that are used by the public; and (2) notify the public, local governments, and the EPA when the water is not safe for recreational activities. Specifically, the bill expands the program to allow the EPA to award grants for identifying sources of contamination (i.e., pathogens) for coastal recreation waters. It also allows grants to be used for monitoring and notification of contamination in (1) shallow waters upstream from recreational waters, and (2) recreational waters on beaches.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Protecting Individuals From Mass Aerial Surveillance Act of 2015 Prohibits a federal entity from using unmanned aircraft or other mobile aerial-view devices (MAVDs) to: (1) surveil property, persons, or their effects; or (2) gather evidence pertaining to known or suspected criminal conduct, or conduct that violates a statute or regulation. Sets forth exceptions that allow MAVDs to be used by federal entities to: surveil national borders to prevent or deter illegal entry of persons or illegal substances; prevent imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm to a specific individual, counter an imminent risk of a terrorist attack by a specific individual or organization, prevent imminent destruction of evidence, or counter an imminent or actual escape of a criminal or terrorist suspect; monitor or research environmental, geologic, or weather-related damage and events, including forest fires, erosion, floods, wildlife, habitats, or illegal vegetation on public lands; or acquire information about an individual who consents to the use of an MAVD. Allows law enforcement parties to use an MAVD to surveil specific property, persons, or their effects pursuant to a search and seizure warrant. Prohibits a federal entity actor from making an intentional effort to identify an individual from, or associate an individual with, the information collected under certain exceptions to the prohibition on the use of MAVDs. Bars disclosure of collected information except to another federal entity or state, tribal, or local government agency that agrees to be bound by the restrictions in this Act. Prohibits federal entities from: (1) soliciting or awarding contracts to surveil by MAVD for a federal entity, unless the federal entity has existing authority for such surveillance; or (2) purchasing information obtained from MAVD surveillance by a nonfederal entity if such information contains personal information, except with the consent of the affected persons. Prohibits this Act from being construed to preempt any state law regarding the use of MAVDs exclusively within the borders of that state.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Extends well-wishes to the Dalai Lama on his 80th birthday. Recognizes the Dalai Lama for a lifelong commitment and contribution to the promotion of nonviolence, human rights, religious tolerance, environmental awareness, and democracy. Recognizes the Dalai Lama for using moral authority to promote the concept of universal responsibility as a guiding tenet for how human beings should treat one another and the planet.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Nuclear Terrorism Conventions Implementation and Safety of Maritime Navigation Act of 2015 Amends the federal criminal code to expand provisions against violence against maritime navigation by prohibiting the use against or on a ship, or the discharge from a ship, of any explosive or radioactive material, biological, chemical, or nuclear weapon or nuclear explosive device in a manner that causes or is likely to cause death or serious injury or damage, the discharge from a ship of oil, liquefied natural gas, or other hazardous or noxious material that causes or is likely to cause death or serious injury or damage, or the use of a ship in a manner that causes death or serious injury or damage, when the purpose of such an act is to intimidate a population or compel a government or an international organization to do, or to abstain from doing, any act. Prohibits: (1) transporting on board a ship any prohibited material knowing that it is intended to be used to cause, or in a threat to cause, death or serious injury or damage; or (2) transporting another person on board who has committed an offense against maritime navigation. Imposes similar prohibitions against violence against maritime fixed platforms. Authorizes: (1) civil forfeiture of any real or personal property used or intended to be used to commit or to facilitate the commission of a maritime navigation offense; and (2) the interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications in the investigation of maritime navigation and maritime fixed platform offenses and acts of nuclear terrorism. Imposes a prison term against any person who knowingly and unlawfully: (1) possesses radioactive material or makes or possesses a device with the intent to cause death, serious bodily injury, or substantial damage to property or the environment; or (2) uses such material or device in a manner that causes the release of, or increases the risk of release of, radioactive material to cause death or damage or to compel a person, an international organization, or a county to do or refrain from doing an act. Prohibits threats and attempts or conspiracies to use radioactive material or devices in violation of this Act. Prohibits any person, without lawful authority, from intentionally carrying, sending, or moving nuclear material into or out of a country. Includes acts of nuclear terrorism prohibited by this Act: (1) within the definition of "federal crime of terrorism," and (2) as a predicate in prosecutions for providing material support and resources to terrorists.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Defending Rivers from Overreaching Policies Act of 2015 This bill requires the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish: (1) a Supplemental Scientific Review Panel to make recommendations regarding metrics to quantify the connection between any body of water or wetland and a traditionally navigable water, and (2) an Ephemeral and Intermittent Streams Advisory Commission to develop criteria to define whether a body of water or wetland has a significant nexus to a traditional navigable water using the metrics developed by the review panel. The commission must report to the Army Corps and the EPA on the criteria after a public comment period and release public versions of the reports. The Army Corps and the EPA may not develop, finalize, adopt, implement, apply, administer, or enforce the proposed rule entitled, "Definition of 'Waters of the United States' Under the Clean Water Act" and published on April 21, 2014, or begin the drafting of any substantially similar rule, until they receive a final report from the commission.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ensuring Effective Discipline Over Monitoring Act of 2015 or the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015 TITLE I--FISA BUSINESS RECORDS REFORMS Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to establish a new process to be followed when the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) submits an application to a FISA court for an order requiring the production of business records or other tangible things for an investigation to obtain foreign intelligence information not concerning a U.S. person or to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities. Prohibits the FBI from applying for a tangible thing production order, and prohibits a court from authorizing the collection of tangible things, unless a specific selection term is used as the basis for the production. Maintains limitations under current law that prohibit the FBI from applying for tangible thing production orders for threat assessments. Establishes two separate frameworks for the production of tangible things with different standards that apply based on whether the FBI's application seeks: production on an ongoing basis of call detail records created before, on, or after the date of the application relating to an authorized investigation to protect against international terrorism, in which case the specific selection term must specifically identify an individual, account, or personal device; or production of call detail records or other tangible things in any other manner, in which case the selection term must specifically identify an individual, a federal officer or employee, a group, an entity, an association, a corporation, a foreign power, an account, a physical or an electronic address, a personal device, or any other specific identifier but is prohibited from including, when not used as part of a specific identifier, a broad geographic region (including the United States, a city, county, state, zip code, or area code) or an electronic communication or remote computing service provider, unless the provider is itself a subject of an authorized investigation. Defines "call detail record" as session identifying information (including an originating or terminating telephone number, an International Mobile Subscriber Identity number, or an International Mobile Station Equipment Identity number), a telephone calling card number, or the time or duration of a call. Excludes from such definition: (1) the contents of any communication; (2) the name, address, or financial information of a subscriber or customer; or (3) cell site location or global positioning system information. Requires the FBI, in applications for ongoing production of call detail records for investigations to protect against international terrorism, to show: (1) reasonable grounds to believe that the call detail records are relevant to such investigation; and (2) a reasonable, articulable suspicion that the specific selection term is associated with a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power engaged in international terrorism or activities in preparation for such terrorism. Requires a judge approving such an ongoing release of call detail records for an investigation to protect against international terrorism to: limit such production to a period not to exceed 180 days but allow such orders to be extended upon application, with judicial approval; permit the government to require the production of an initial set of call records using the reasonable, articulable suspicion standard that the term is associated with a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power and then a subsequent set of call records using session-identifying information or a telephone calling card number identified by the specific selection term that was used to produce the initial set of records (thus limiting the government to what is commonly referred to as two "hops" of call records); and direct the government to adopt minimization procedures requiring prompt destruction of produced call records that are not foreign intelligence information. Allows a FISA court to approve other categories of FBI requests for the production of call detail records or tangible things (i.e., FBI call detail record and tangible thing applications that do not seek ongoing production of call detail records created before, on, or after the date of an application relating to an authorized investigation to protect against international terrorism) without subjecting the production to: (1) the reasonable, articulable suspicion standard for an association with a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power; (2) the 180-day or the two-hop limitation; or (3) the special minimization procedures that require prompt destruction of produced records only if the order approves an ongoing production of call detail records for investigations to protect against international terrorism. Authorizes the Attorney General to require the emergency production of tangible things without first obtaining a court order if the Attorney General: (1) reasonably determines that an emergency situation requires the production of tangible things before an order authorizing production can be obtained with due diligence, (2) reasonably determines that a factual basis exists for the issuance of such a production order, (3) informs a FISA judge of the decision to require such production at the time the emergency decision is made, and (4) makes an application to a FISA judge within seven days after the Attorney General requires such emergency production. Terminates the authority for such emergency production of tangible things when the information sought is obtained, when the application for the order is denied, or after the expiration of seven days from the time the Attorney General begins requiring such emergency production, whichever is earliest. Prohibits information obtained or evidence derived from such an emergency production from being received in evidence or disclosed in any proceeding in or before any court, grand jury, agency, legislative committee, or other authority of the United States, any state, or any political subdivision if: (1) the subsequent application for court approval is denied, or (2) the production is terminated and no order is issued approving the production. Bars information concerning any U.S. person acquired from such production from being used or disclosed in any other manner by federal officers or employees without the consent of such person, except with approval of the Attorney General if the information indicates a threat of death or serious bodily harm. Requires a FISA court, as a condition to approving an application for a tangible thing production order, to find that the minimization procedures submitted with the application meet applicable FISA standards. Authorizes the court to impose additional minimization procedures. Allows a nondisclosure order imposed in connection with a tangible thing production order to be challenged immediately by filing a petition for judicial review. Removes a requirement that a judge considering a petition to modify or set aside a nondisclosure order treat as conclusive a certification by the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, an Assistant Attorney General, or the FBI Director that disclosure may endanger national security or interfere with diplomatic relations. Extends liability protections to persons who provide information, facilities, or technical assistance for the production of tangible things. Requires the government to compensate a person for reasonable expenses incurred in producing tangible things or providing technical assistance to the government to implement production procedures. Prohibits this Act from being construed to authorize the production of the contents of any electronic communication from an electronic communication service provider under such tangible thing requirements. TITLE II--FISA PEN REGISTER AND TRAP AND TRACE DEVICE REFORM Requires the government's FISA applications for orders approving pen registers or trap and trace devices to include a specific selection term as the basis for the use of the register or device. Prohibits broad geographic regions or an identification of an electronic communications service or a remote computing service from serving as such selection term. Directs the Attorney General to ensure that appropriate privacy procedures are in place for the collection, retention, and use of nonpublicly available information concerning U.S. persons that is collected through a pen register or trap and trace device installed with FISA court approval. TITLE III--FISA ACQUISITIONS TARGETING PERSONS OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES REFORMS Limits the government's use of information obtained through an authorization by the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to target non-U.S. persons outside the United States if a FISA court later determines that certain targeting or minimization procedures certified to the court are unlawful. Prohibits information obtained or evidence derived from an acquisition pursuant to a part of a targeting certification or a related minimization procedure that the court has identified as deficient concerning a U.S. person from being received in evidence or otherwise disclosed in any proceeding in or before any court, grand jury, agency, legislative committee, or other authority of the United States, any state, or any political subdivision. Bars information concerning any U.S. person acquired pursuant to a deficient part of a certification from being used or disclosed subsequently in any other manner by federal officers or employees without the consent of the U.S. person, except with approval of the Attorney General if the information indicates a threat of death or serious bodily harm. Allows a FISA court, if the government corrects the deficiency, to permit the use or disclosure of information obtained before the date of the correction. TITLE IV--FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE SURVEILLANCE COURT REFORMS Directs the presiding judges of the FISA court and the FISA court of review to jointly designate at least five individuals to serve as amicus curiae to assist in the consideration of any application for an order or review that presents a novel or significant interpretation of the law, unless the court finds that such appointment is not appropriate. Permits FISA courts to appoint an individual or organization to serve as amicus curiae in other instances, including to provide technical expertise. Requires such amicus curiae to provide: (1) legal arguments that advance protection of individual privacy and civil liberties, or (2) other legal arguments or information related to intelligence collection or communications technology. Allows the FISA court of review to certify a question of law to be reviewed by the Supreme Court. Permits the Supreme Court to appoint FISA amicus curiae or other persons to provide briefings or other assistance upon such a certification. Requires the DNI to: (1) conduct a declassification review of each decision, order, or opinion issued by the FISA court or the FISA court of review that includes a significant construction or interpretation of any provision of law, including any novel or significant construction or interpretation of "specific selection term" as defined in this Act; and (2) make such decisions, orders, or opinions publicly available to the greatest extent practicable, subject to permissible redactions. Authorizes the DNI to waive such review and public availability requirements if: (1) a waiver is necessary to protect the national security of the United States or properly classified intelligence sources or methods, and (2) an unclassified statement prepared by the Attorney General is made publicly available to summarize the significant construction or interpretation of law. TITLE V--NATIONAL SECURITY LETTER REFORM Amends the federal criminal code, the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require the FBI and other government agencies to use a specific selection term as the basis for national security letters that request information from wire or electronic communication service providers, financial institutions, or consumer reporting agencies. Requires the government to identify: (1) a person, entity, telephone number, or account for requests for telephone toll and transactional records; (2) a customer, entity, or account when requesting financial records for certain intelligence or protective functions; or (3) a consumer or account when requesting consumer reports for counterintelligence or counterterrorism purposes. Revises standards under which the government can prohibit recipients of national security letters from disclosing to anyone that the government has sought or obtained access to the requested information. Directs the Attorney General to adopt procedures for imposed nondisclosure requirements, including requirements under the National Security Act of 1947, to be reviewed at appropriate intervals and terminated if facts no longer support nondisclosure. Allows national security letter recipients to challenge national security letter requests or nondisclosure requirements under modified procedures for filing a petition for judicial review. Removes a requirement that the court treat as conclusive a certification by the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, an Assistant Attorney General, or the FBI Director that disclosure may endanger U.S. national security or interfere with diplomatic relations. TITLE VI--FISA TRANSPARENCY AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS Requires the Attorney General to expand an annual report to Congress regarding tangible thing applications to include a summary of compliance reviews and the total number of: (1) applications made for the daily production of call detail records created before, on, or after the date of an application relating to an authorized investigation to protect against international terrorism; and (2) orders approving such requests. Directs the Attorney General to report to Congress annually regarding tangible things applications and orders in which the specific selection term does not specifically identify an individual, account, or personal device. Requires the report to indicate whether the court approving such orders has directed additional, particularized minimization procedures beyond those adopted by the Attorney General. Directs the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to submit annually to Congress the number of: (1) FISA applications submitted and orders granted, modified, or denied under specified FISA authorities; and (2) appointments of an individual to serve as amicus curiae for FISA courts, including the name of each appointed individual, as well as any findings that such an appointment is not appropriate. Makes the report subject to a declassification review by the Attorney General and the DNI. Directs the DNI to make available publicly a report that identifies, for the preceding 12-month period, the total number of: (1) FISA court orders issued for electronic surveillance, physical searches, the targeting of persons outside the United States, pen registers and trap and trace devices, call detail records, and other tangible things; and (2) national security letters issued. Requires the DNI's reports to include the estimated number of: (1) targets of certain FISA orders; (2) search terms and queries concerning U.S. persons when the government retrieves information from electronic or wire communications obtained by targeting non-U.S. persons outside the United States; (3) unique identifiers used to communicate certain collected information; and (4) search terms concerning U.S. persons used to query a database of call detail records. Exempts certain queries by the FBI from such estimates. Permits a person who is subject to a nondisclosure requirement accompanying a FISA order, directive, or national security letter to choose one of four methods to report publicly, on a semiannual or annual basis, the aggregate number of orders, directives, or letters with which the person was required to comply. Specifies the categories of orders, directives, and letters to be itemized or combined, the details authorized to be included with respect to contents or noncontents orders and the number of customer selectors targeted, and the ranges within which the number of orders, directives, or letters received may be reported aggregately in bands under each permitted method. Expands the categories of FISA court decisions, orders, or opinions that the Attorney General is required to submit to Congress within 45 days after issuance of the decision to include: (1) a denial or modification of an application under FISA; and (2) a change of the application, or a novel application, of any FISA provision. Revises reporting requirements regarding electronic surveillance, physical searches, and tangible things to include the House Judiciary Committee as a recipient of such reports. Requires the Attorney General to identify in an existing semiannual report each agency on behalf of which the government has applied for orders authorizing or approving the installation and use of pen registers or trap and trace devices under FISA. TITLE VII--ENHANCED NATIONAL SECURITY PROVISIONS Establishes procedures for a lawfully authorized targeting of a non-U.S. person previously believed to be located outside the United States to continue for a period not to exceed 72 hours from the time that the non-U.S. person is reasonably believed to be located inside the United States. Requires an element of the intelligence community, as a condition to exercising such authority, to: (1) determine that a lapse in the targeting poses a threat of death or serious bodily harm; (2) notify the Attorney General; and (3) request, as soon as practicable, the employment of emergency electronic surveillance or emergency physical search under appropriate FISA standards. Expands the definition of "agent of a foreign power" to include a non-U.S. person who: (1) acts in the United States for or on behalf of a foreign power engaged in clandestine intelligence activities in the United States contrary to U.S. interests or as an officer, employee, or member of a foreign power, irrespective of whether the person is inside the United States; or (2) knowingly aids, abets, or conspires with any person engaging in an international proliferation of weapons of mass destruction on behalf of a foreign power or conducting activities in preparation for such proliferation. Increases from 15 to 20 years the maximum penalty of imprisonment for providing material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization in cases where the support does not result in the death of any person. Amends the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 and the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to extend until December 15, 2019, FISA authorities concerning: (1) the production of business records, including call detail records and other tangible things; (2) roving electronic surveillance orders; and (3) a revised definition of "agent of a foreign power" that includes any non-U.S. persons who engage in international terrorism or preparatory activities (commonly referred to as the "lone wolf" provision). TITLE VIII--SAFETY OF MARITIME NAVIGATION AND NUCLEAR TERRORISM CONVENTIONS IMPLEMENTATION Amends the federal criminal code to provide that existing prohibitions against conduct that endangers the safe navigation of a ship: (1) shall apply to conduct that is committed against or on board a U.S. vessel or a vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction, in U.S. territorial seas, or by a U.S. corporation or legal entity; and (2) shall not apply to activities of armed forces during an armed conflict or in the exercise of official duties. Sets forth procedures regarding the delivery of a person who is suspected of committing a maritime navigation or fixed platform offense to the authorities of a country that is a party to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation. Subjects property used or intended to be used to commit or to facilitate the commission of a maritime navigation offense to civil forfeiture. Prohibits: (1) using in or on a ship or a maritime fixed platform any explosive or radioactive material, biological, chemical, or nuclear weapon, or other nuclear explosive device in a manner likely to cause death or serious injury or damage when the purpose is to intimidate a population or to compel a government or international organization to act or abstain from acting; (2) transporting on board a ship such material or device (or certain related material or technology) that is intended for such use, with specified exceptions; (3) transporting on board a ship a person known to have committed a maritime navigation offense intending to assist such person to evade prosecution; (4) injuring or killing any person in connection with such an offense; or (5) conspiring, attempting, or threatening to commit such an offense. Sets forth: (1) the circumstances in which the United States can exercise jurisdiction over such offenses, and (2) exceptions applicable to activities of the armed forces. Provides for civil forfeiture of property used to commit or to facilitate a violation. Prohibits anyone, knowingly, unlawfully, and with intent to cause death, serious bodily injury, or substantial damage to property or the environment, from: (1) possessing radioactive material or making or possessing a nuclear explosive device or a radioactive material dispersal or radiation-emitting device; (2) using radioactive material or a device, using, damaging, or interfering with the operation of a nuclear facility in a manner that causes or increases the risk of the release of radioactive material, or causing radioactive contamination or exposure to radiation; or (3) threatening, attempting, or conspiring to commit such an offense. Sets forth: (1) the circumstances in which the United States can exercise jurisdiction over such offenses, and (2) exceptions applicable to activities of the armed forces. Modifies the definition of "federal crime of terrorism" to include such offenses. Amends provisions prohibiting transactions involving nuclear materials to: (1) prohibit, intentionally and without lawful authority, carrying, sending, or moving nuclear material into or out of a country; and (2) establish an exception for activities of the armed forces.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Honors the life of Rachel Carson, a scientist, writer, and pioneer of the environmental movement.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Protecting Lands Against Narcotics Trafficking Act of 2015 or the PLANT Act Amends the Controlled Substances Act to: (1) impose an additional term of up to ten years' imprisonment for cultivating or manufacturing controlled substances on federal property; and (2) apply the prohibition against assembling, maintaining, or placing a booby trap on federal property where a controlled substance is being manufactured to federal property where a controlled substance is being cultivated. Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to amend and review the Federal Sentencing Guidelines to provide for a penalty enhancement of not less than one offense level for manufacturing, distributing, or dispensing, or possessing with intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense a controlled substance or a counterfeit substance while on federal property or while intentionally trespassing on the property of another if such offense: (1) creates a hazard to humans, wildlife, or domestic animals; (2) degrades or harms the environment or natural resources; (3) pollutes an aquifer, spring, stream, river, or body of water; (4) involves the diversion, redirection, obstruction, or draining of an aquifer, spring, stream, river, or body of water or the clear cut of timber while cultivating or manufacturing a controlled substance; or (5) involves the possession of a firearm while cultivating or manufacturing controlled substances. Prohibits, and sets penalties of up to $500,000 for an individual or $1 million for other than an individual for, diverting, redirecting, obstructing, or draining an aquifer, spring, stream, river, or body of water or clear cutting timber while cultivating or manufacturing a controlled substance on federal property or while cultivating or manufacturing a controlled substance while intentionally trespassing on the property of another. Requires such fines to be transferred to the Department of the Interior for use in addressing the environmental damage caused by the offense.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2015 Amends the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to extend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Trust Fund until 19 years after enactment of this Act. Prescribes additional periods of required presence in an affected area during atmospheric nuclear testing for individuals filing leukemia or specified disease claims. Increases the amount of compensation an individual filing a claim may receive to $150,000. Expands "affected area" to include Colorado, Idaho, Montana, and New Mexico, as well as any county in Arizona, Nevada, or Utah. Extends to December 31, 1990, the period during which an individual employed at any time in a uranium mine or uranium mill is made eligible to receive compensation for a disease claim due to radiation exposure. Makes a core driller eligible to receive compensation upon filing of a disease claim. Makes miners, core drillers, and ore transporters who suffer renal cancer or any other chronic renal disease, including nephritis and kidney tubal tissue injury, eligible for compensation due to exposure to radiation while on the job. Requires the Attorney General to accept written affidavits meeting specified requirements regarding employment history, physical presence in an affected area, or participation at a nuclear testing site in determining the eligibility of claimants. Extends until 19 years after enactment of this Act the statute of limitations for the filing of such claims. Increases from 2% to 10% of the payment received by a claimant the maximum amount of attorneys fees that can be charged for the filing of an initial claim. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, to establish a program of grants to institutions of higher education to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling among non-occupationally exposed individuals, including family members of uranium miners and millers. Amends the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 to include as a member of the Special Exposure Cohort entitled to compensation with respect to chronic beryllium disease under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program any Department of Energy employee or contractor who contracted cancer after beginning employment between January 1, 1942, and December 31, 1990, in a uranium mine or mill located in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, Washington, Utah, Idaho, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, or any other state the Attorney General includes.