This bill requires the U.S. Department of Agriculture to transfer ownership of the Crossett Experimental Forest in Arkansas to the State of Arkansas if the state requests it within 180 days of the law's enactment. The forest includes the R.R. Reynolds Research Natural Area and associated facilities. As a condition of the transfer, Arkansas must designate the property as the Crossett State Forest, manage it according to state forest laws, and continue using it for forest research, education, and demonstration purposes in coordination with the University of Arkansas at Monticello and the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture. The state is responsible for paying all costs associated with the transfer, including surveys and administrative expenses. If the Secretary of Agriculture determines that Arkansas fails to maintain the forest according to these requirements, the federal government can reclaim ownership after giving the state 180 days to correct the problem.

The Great American Outdoors Act 250 is a bipartisan bill that creates the America's Legacy Restoration Fund to modernize and maintain five major federal agencies: the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Indian Education. The fund will receive up to $1.9 billion annually from fiscal years 2026 through 2030, with revenues coming from energy development on federal lands (50%), donations, and new entrance fees for foreign visitors ($100 per visit or $250 annually), with funds allocated primarily to the National Park Service (70%) and other agencies for priority maintenance projects like repairing trails, roads, and facilities. Agencies must secure matching funds from private donations or their own budgets for eligible projects, and the bill establishes a public dashboard and annual congressional reporting to track progress on reducing the deferred maintenance backlog. The bill also streamlines the approval process for projects through expedited contracting procedures and establishes a pilot program to enhance outdoor recreation and sportsmen's access on federal lands.

The Fair Care Act of 2026 is a comprehensive healthcare reform bill that addresses rising costs across health insurance, prescription drugs, and medical services. The legislation modernizes Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) by expanding eligibility and allowing unused insurance tax credits to be deposited into accounts, while requiring new corporations and federal employees to participate in HSA programs. It strengthens private insurance protections by prohibiting coverage denials based on preexisting conditions or health status, capping out-of-pocket costs, and extending dependent coverage to age 26, while also requiring insurers to accept all applicants during enrollment periods. The bill enhances prescription drug competition and affordability through new FDA approval pathways for drugs treating rare and serious diseases, transparency requirements for pharmacy benefit managers and manufacturers, and restrictions on hidden rebates that don't benefit patients. It reforms Medicare and Medicaid through competitive bidding systems, new payment models for states, and expanded telehealth access for mental health services. The bill also includes $10 million in funding for consumer education about HSAs and establishes new price transparency requirements for hospitals and insurance plans, along with medical malpractice reforms and congressional review procedures for FDA regulations.

This resolution expresses congressional support for designating April 2026 as "Second Chance Month" to raise awareness about the challenges faced by formerly incarcerated individuals. The measure highlights how people returning from prison often encounter significant legal and social barriers, known as "collateral consequences," that can prevent them from finding employment, obtaining education, securing housing, and fully reintegrating into their communities. These barriers can contribute to recidivism and disproportionately affect communities of color. The resolution acknowledges successful federal programs like the Second Chance Act of 2007 and the First Step Act of 2018, which have provided reentry services to over 442,000 individuals, and honors Charles Colson, a Watergate figure who founded Prison Fellowship. The resolution calls on Americans to observe the month through activities and programs that promote awareness of these barriers and provide closure for people with criminal records who have served their sentences.

Sara's Law and the Preventing Unfair Sentencing Act of 2026 would allow federal judges to sentence minors below mandatory minimum sentences when those minors are themselves victims of trafficking, abuse, or sexual assault. The bill recognizes that trauma from such victimization can affect a young offender's behavior and gives judges flexibility to account for this context when determining sentences. The law would apply to individuals under 18 who have been convicted of a violent offense against someone who victimized them through human trafficking, child sexual abuse, or related crimes within the year prior to the offense. The bill also directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and update its sentencing guidelines to align with this new judicial discretion. This legislation applies only to convictions that occur after the law is enacted, with no specific funding appropriated in the text provided.

H.Res. 821 is a nonbinding resolution expressing congressional support for designating October 2025 as "National Dyslexia Awareness Month." The resolution does not create any new programs or funding, but instead calls attention to dyslexia as a widespread learning disability affecting an estimated one in five people, making it the most common learning disability overall. The resolution emphasizes that dyslexia causes unexpected reading difficulties despite normal intelligence, often stems from phonological processing challenges, and can create achievement gaps as early as first grade, but also notes that people with dyslexia often have strengths in reasoning and critical thinking. The resolution urges Congress, schools, and educational agencies to recognize dyslexia's educational impact and support early screening and evidence-based intervention to help affected students succeed. No funding or specific timelines are required since this is a ceremonial measure meant to raise awareness rather than implement policy changes.

Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act or the SPEED ActThis bill limits the scope of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) and modifies the environmental review of major federal actions under NEPA to generally limit the number of federal actions that trigger NEPA review and to expedite the review process.For example, the bill redefines major federal actions, including to specify that an agency may not determine that an action is a major federal action based solely on the provision of federal funds.It also excludes from the requirement for NEPA review certain proposed agency actions that have already been reviewed under another federal, state, or tribal environmental review statute that meets the requirements of NEPA.The bill directs an agency, when preparing an environmental document for a proposed agency action, to consider only those effects proximately caused by the immediate project or action under consideration. Agencies may not consider effects that are speculative, attenuated from the project or action, separate in time or place from the project or action, or in relation to separate projects or actions.The bill modifies the requirement for agencies to prepare an environmental assessment to apply to agency actions that are not likely to have a reasonably foreseeable significant effect on the quality of the human environment. (Currently, the requirement only applies to actions that do not have such an effect.) The bill makes a variety of other modifications to NEPA, including by limiting judicial review of NEPA cases.

This resolution supports the designation of Second Chance Month to promote awareness of unnecessary legal and social barriers that prevent individuals with criminal records from becoming productive members of society.

ESA Amendments Act of 2025This bill reauthorizes through FY2031 the Endangered Species Act and generally narrows protections provided under the act.The bill directs the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to submit a National Listing Work Plan that establishes a five-year schedule and plan for addressing listing of endangered or threatened species and designation of critical habitats for such species. Under the plan, the bill gives the Services flexibility on the timing of acting on listing petitions and eliminates the requirement for the Services to act within 12 months on listing petitions.The bill limits what land may be designated as critical habitat for an endangered or threatened species. It also limits protections provided to threatened species and allows a state to regulate the recovery of such species if the Services determine the state's proposed recovery strategy would conserve the species.The bill provides statutory authority for Conservation Benefit Agreements, which allow private landowners to voluntarily enter agreements to reduce threats to candidate species in exchange for being allowed to continue their operations if the species is later listed. The bill also modifies the permitting process for certain other voluntary conservation agreements, including by exempting incidental take permits (e.g., permits to harm or kill a species) from environmental review requirements.The bill also makes a variety of other changes to the act, including limiting consultation requirements, judicial review, and awards for attorneys’ fees in certain cases.

Focus on Learning ActThis bill requires certain federal actions to address the use of mobile devices in elementary and secondary schools.First, the bill directs the Office of the Surgeon General, in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to study and report on the use of mobile devices in elementary and secondary schools nationwide. Among other elements, this study must include the impact of mobile device use on student learning and academic achievement, student educational outcomes, and student mental health.Second, the Department of Education, in consultation with HHS, must establish a pilot program to award grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to enable participating schools served by such LEAs to purchase secure containers and install lockers in order to create a school environment free of mobile devices.

This resolution provides amounts for the expenses of the House Committee on Natural Resources for the 119th Congress.

Fix Our Forests ActThis bill establishes requirements for managing forests on federal land, including requirements concerning reducing wildfire threats, expediting the review of certain forest management projects, and implementing forest management projects and other activities.Specifically, the bill (1) designates certain firesheds at high risk for wildfires as fireshed management areas; (2) directs the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Geological Survey to jointly establish an interagency Fireshed Center that is responsible for duties related to assessing and predicting fire, including maintaining a fireshed registry on a publicly accessible website that provides interactive geospatial data on individual firesheds; and (3) makes other requirements related to reducing wildfire.Next, the bill expedites the review of certain forest management projects under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 and exempts certain activities from NEPA review. It also establishes intra-agency strike teams to accelerate the review and any interagency consultation processes under NEPA, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the National Historic Preservation Act. It also limits consultation requirements concerning threatened and endangered species under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 and the Federal Land Management and Policy Act of 1976. Finally, it limits litigation involving fireshed management projects and limits remedies that courts may provide.Additionally, the bill supports reducing community wildfire risks, carrying out forest restoration and stewardship activities (including watershed protection and restoration), conducting biochar demonstration projects, advancing technologies to address forest wildfires, and assisting wildland firefighters and their families.