Recent Issues

H.R. 4795 — they call it the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026 — passed the House on September 4th. What it actually does is simple: if a college takes federal student aid money, it can't boycott Israel. Not Israeli universities, not Israeli businesses, not Israeli people. You want the federal dollars? Then you don't get to discriminate. Pick one.

That's the whole argument, and honestly it's not a complicated one. Taxpayers shouldn't be funding schools that blacklist Israelis.

Now it's in the Senate. It has to pass there, then go to the President's desk to become law.

So here's the ask: call your Senators. Tell them to bring H.R. 4795 to the floor, vote on it, and pass it. That's it. That's the call.

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women aside from skin cancer, yet the risk assessment tools used to identify who is at elevated risk vary widely in accuracy and are inconsistently applied — leaving many high-risk women unaware of their status and without access to enhanced screening or preventive care.

H.R. 10763, the Know Your Risk Act (119th Congress), introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to evaluate existing breast cancer risk assessment tools, identify inaccuracies and gaps, and report findings to Congress, and to advance a single, standardized, publicly accessible risk assessment tool. Introduced by Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA), the bill was inspired in part by the advocacy of actress and breast cancer survivor Olivia Munn, who is also working with Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) on related Senate legislation to make lifetime risk assessments standard care. The bill also seeks to expand access to risk assessment services through the CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), which provides low-income and uninsured women with access to screening and diagnostic services. Standardizing and improving these tools could help ensure that more women — particularly those from underserved communities — receive timely, personalized guidance on their breast cancer risk.

Constituents are urged to call their U.S. Representatives to cosponsor and advance H.R. 10763 out of committee, and to call their U.S. Senators to introduce and champion a companion Senate bill. Broader adoption of evidence-based, standardized risk assessment tools is a critical step toward earlier detection, more equitable care, and ultimately fewer breast cancer deaths.

The Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is the primary federal agency responsible for enforcing anti-discrimination laws in K-12 schools and universities across the country. This includes investigating complaints of antisemitic harassment and discrimination, Title VI violations, disability discrimination, and other civil rights abuses affecting students. Between March and September 2025 alone, OCR received over 9,000 discrimination complaints and resolved more than 7,000 — a workload that reflects the critical, ongoing demand for this enforcement function.

Recent Congressional budget proposals and administrative actions have significantly cut OCR's staffing and resources, resulting in closed regional offices, fewer investigators, and longer wait times for students and families seeking relief. OCR has also sent letters to 60 universities currently under investigation for antisemitic discrimination and harassment — cases that are now at risk of stalling or being dropped entirely due to resource constraints. Gutting OCR undermines the federal government's ability to protect Jewish students, students with disabilities, and other vulnerable populations from discrimination in educational settings.

Congress must restore full funding to the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights to ensure it can carry out its statutory mandate to investigate and resolve civil rights complaints in a timely and effective manner. Constituents urge their representatives to oppose any budget cuts to OCR and to support appropriations that maintain or increase the office's enforcement capacity.

The Holocaust Education and Antisemitism Lessons (HEAL) Act (H.R. 768, 119th Congress) is a bipartisan bill that directs the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to conduct a comprehensive study on Holocaust education efforts across states, local educational agencies (LEAs), and public schools nationwide. The study would identify gaps in curriculum, assess the quality and consistency of Holocaust instruction, and document best practices from historical and Jewish studies experts — equipping policymakers with the data needed to strengthen Holocaust education across the country.

Holocaust education requirements vary widely by state, and millions of American students receive little to no structured instruction on the Holocaust and its lessons. As antisemitism continues to rise in schools and communities, a federal assessment is a critical first step toward ensuring all students understand this history and its enduring relevance to human rights and civic life.

The HEAL Act has earned support from educators, civil rights organizations, and Jewish community groups, including the National Education Association (NEA). Constituents are urging their U.S. Representatives to cosponsor and vote YES on H.R. 768 to advance this important, bipartisan legislation.

Antisemitism on college campuses has risen sharply in recent years, leaving many Jewish students feeling unsafe and unsupported. A 2023 bipartisan Senate HELP Committee roundtable highlighted the urgent need for stronger institutional accountability, and a subsequent bipartisan federal report from the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights called for a more transparent and robust response to campus antisemitism.

The Protecting Students on Campus Act addresses these concerns directly. The bill requires universities that participate in federal student aid programs to adopt a standard definition of antisemitism, establish clear and accessible pathways for students to report incidents of antisemitic harassment and discrimination, and increase transparency in how civil rights complaints are handled under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. It has been reintroduced in both the House and Senate with bipartisan support in the 119th Congress (2025–2026).

Constituents are urging their Members of Congress to cosponsor and advance the Protecting Students on Campus Act to ensure that Jewish students — and all students — are protected from discrimination and can pursue their education free from hate and harassment.

Michigan Senate Bill 580, sponsored by Senator McBroom, would amend the Michigan Vehicle Code (1949 PA 300, MCL 257.304) to eliminate the current 45-day waiting period before a convicted drunk driver may install and use an ignition interlock device (IID). Under current law, offenders must wait 45 days after conviction before they can access this technology — a gap during which they may continue driving without any safeguard. SB 580 allows immediate IID installation following conviction, closing that window of risk.

Ignition interlock devices are proven, evidence-based tools for reducing repeat drunk driving offenses. Research consistently shows that IIDs reduce DUI recidivism more effectively than license suspension alone, and the technology is endorsed by the National Transportation Safety Board, the National Safety Council, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). A broad coalition of road safety advocates has urged the Michigan Legislature to advance this bill without delay.

Constituents are urging their Michigan state legislators and Governor to support and sign SB 580 into law. Removing the 45-day waiting period means convicted drunk drivers are subject to IID monitoring from the moment of conviction, protecting Michigan roadways and saving lives.

Pennsylvania House Bill 2495, known as "Joey's Law" and sponsored by Representative Shelby Labs, seeks to strengthen criminal penalties for individuals convicted of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence (DUI). Current Pennsylvania law allows offenders who cause a fatality while impaired to serve significantly reduced sentences through the "Boot Camp" alternative sentencing program — a loophole that many victims' families argue results in grossly inadequate punishment for taking a life.

Joey's Law would increase the mandatory minimum sentences for homicide by vehicle while DUI, ensuring that the gravity of the offense is reflected in the sentence served. Critically, the bill would also close the Boot Camp loophole, preventing impaired drivers who kill someone from qualifying for this early-release alternative and requiring them to serve meaningful prison time.

Constituents are urging their Pennsylvania state legislators to co-sponsor and vote YES on HB 2495. Passing Joey's Law would bring greater justice for victims' families, create a stronger deterrent against drunk and impaired driving, and ensure that Pennsylvania's sentencing laws reflect the irreversible harm caused by DUI-related fatalities.

North Carolina law currently requires ignition interlock devices (IIDs) only for repeat DWI offenders and first-time offenders with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .15 or greater. This leaves a significant gap: first-time offenders with a BAC between .08 and .14 face no IID requirement, even though any impaired driver poses a serious risk to public safety.

House Bill 1199, authored by Representative Mike Schietzelt, would close that gap by mandating ignition interlock devices for all convicted DWI offenders — including first-time offenders at any BAC level. The device requires a driver to pass a breath test before the vehicle will start, directly preventing further impaired driving. If enacted, North Carolina would become the 35th state in the nation to require IIDs for all first-time DWI convictions.

Research consistently shows that IID programs reduce DWI recidivism. Advocacy organizations including Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) support H 1199 as a proven, targeted intervention. Constituents are urged to contact their State Representatives and State Senators to support passage of H 1199.

When an impaired driver kills a parent, the surviving children face not only grief but sudden financial hardship. Bentley's Law addresses this by requiring convicted impaired drivers to pay restitution in the form of child support to the minor children of any parent they kill — an additional consequence that goes beyond existing civil liability.

First introduced in Missouri and named after a child who lost a parent to a drunk driver, Bentley's Law has gained bipartisan momentum across the country. Since 2022, eight states and three other jurisdictions enacted Bentley's Law. (Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas, Maine, South Dakota, Utah, Montana, Missouri, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Cayman Islands).. The payments typically continue until each surviving child reaches adulthood, providing a measure of financial stability during an extraordinarily difficult time.

Constituents are urging their state legislators and governor to support, sponsor, or enact Bentley's Law in their state — ensuring that impaired drivers are held accountable not just criminally and civilly, but also for the long-term financial wellbeing of the children whose lives they devastate.

Section 24220 of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (Public Law 117-158), known as the HALT Drunk Driving Act, directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to establish a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) requiring passive, advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention technology in all new passenger vehicles. This mandate represents a landmark, bipartisan commitment to saving tens of thousands of lives lost each year to drunk driving crashes — approximately 13,500 fatalities annually in the United States.

A proposed amendment to the FY2027 House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill would defund NHTSA's implementation of this safety standard, effectively halting a rulemaking process that is already underway and that the auto industry has had years to prepare for. Defunding this provision would delay or permanently block the deployment of technology — such as passive breath and touch-based alcohol detection systems — that safety experts and advocates widely regard as the most significant advance in traffic safety since the mandatory seatbelt.

Constituents are urging their U.S. Senators to oppose any appropriations rider or amendment that defunds or delays implementation of Section 24220 of PL 117-158, and to ensure NHTSA has the full resources needed to finalize and enforce the impaired driving prevention technology standard on its statutory timeline.