This resolution expresses Senate recognition and appreciation for the approximately two million hotel employees working across the United States in various roles including housekeeping, front desk services, food and beverage, maintenance, and management. The resolution acknowledges that hotel workers are essential to the travel and tourism industry, support local economies and communities, and provide critical services during emergencies and disasters. It highlights that the hotel industry offers substantial career advancement opportunities, with more than half of general managers starting in entry-level positions. The resolution supports National Hotel Employee Day, established in 2022 by the American Hotel & Lodging Association and National Day Calendar, which is observed annually on September 1st. The Senate encourages Americans to recognize and thank hotel employees for their service, professionalism, and dedication to the nation.

The SWIPES Act amends federal fraud laws to crack down on gift card scams and other access device fraud, particularly targeting schemes that victimize seniors. The bill significantly increases criminal penalties for fraud involving access devices like gift cards, passwords, and digital credentials, with sentences ranging up to 30 years for large-scale operations involving over 1,000 counterfeit or unauthorized devices. The legislation creates a new federal crime specifically for fraud targeting people over 60, adding a mandatory 2-year prison sentence on top of penalties for the underlying fraud offense. The bill expands the definition of what constitutes fraud-related access devices to include modern digital credentials and defines gift cards as prepaid cards or codes that can be used at single or multiple merchants. No specific funding or implementation timeline is provided in the legislation.

The PLEDGE Act requires all public elementary and secondary schools in Washington, D.C. to display the American flag in every classroom during the school day and establishes mandatory patriotic observances for students. Specifically, the bill mandates that students recite the Pledge of Allegiance each morning while standing with their right hand over their heart, and requires all students and staff to stand at attention when the national anthem is played. The legislation includes protections for student rights, allowing parents to request in writing that their children be excused from participating in the Pledge, and it requires schools to inform students of this opt-out option through student handbooks or similar publications. The bill also prohibits students from making disruptive displays during the Pledge and requires schools to provide reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. The bill does not specify any funding allocations or implementation timeline beyond the standard legislative process.

This bill makes it a federal crime to intentionally stage a collision involving a commercial motor vehicle. A person who causes such a collision faces up to 20 years in prison and fines, while someone who arranges for another person to stage the collision faces the same penalties. If the staged collision results in serious bodily injury or death, the minimum prison sentence increases to at least 20 years. The bill also prevents federal prosecution of someone who has already been convicted or acquitted of the same act under state or local law. This legislation aims to combat insurance fraud schemes where individuals deliberately cause accidents with trucks and other commercial vehicles to collect insurance payouts, a practice that endangers lives and increases costs for the trucking industry and consumers.

This bill would streamline the federal review process for biosimilar drugs, which are biological medications designed to be nearly identical to existing approved drugs. The legislation amends the Public Health Service Act by removing one requirement from the current biosimilar approval pathway and reorganizing the remaining provisions. Biosimilars are generally less expensive alternatives to brand-name biological medications, so streamlining their approval could potentially help patients access more affordable treatment options and increase competition in the pharmaceutical market. The bill directly affects the Food and Drug Administration's review process and the pharmaceutical companies seeking to bring biosimilar products to market. No specific funding amounts or implementation timelines are specified in this legislation.

This bill would require all ballots cast in federal elections, including absentee and mail-in ballots, to arrive at election officials by the time polls close on Election Day to be counted as valid. The legislation applies to primary, runoff, and general elections for federal office, though it exempts military voters and U.S. citizens voting from abroad, who would be allowed additional time to submit their ballots. The bill amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to establish this uniform deadline across all states and would take effect starting with the 2027 federal elections. This change would effectively end the practice in many states of accepting ballots that arrive after Election Day, even if they were postmarked on or before that date. The legislation contains no new federal funding requirements, as it directs states to implement the deadline through their existing election administration processes.

The Space Ready 2.0 Act authorizes NASA to run a pilot program allowing private companies and other entities to voluntarily contribute funds toward repairing, maintaining, and improving infrastructure at NASA Centers. Under this program, NASA can enter into agreements with commercial partners who use these facilities to share the costs of capital projects, with NASA establishing clear cost estimates upfront and providing final accounting at project completion. Any contributed funds that go unused must be returned to the contributing entity within 90 days of project completion, and companies cannot be denied leases or other agreements based on their unwillingness to contribute to infrastructure projects. The program includes oversight requirements, with NASA submitting annual reports to Congress detailing spending and interim updates every two years, and the authority to collect voluntary contributions expires on December 31, 2031. This legislation does not provide new federal funding but rather creates a mechanism for NASA and its commercial partners to jointly finance infrastructure improvements at agency facilities.

The TRADES Act increases the federal excise tax on investment income earned by private colleges and universities from 8 percent to 15 percent, generating additional revenue that would be directed to career and technical education programs. The higher tax rate applies to endowment investment returns at wealthy private institutions, making those schools contribute more to federal coffers based on their investment income. The revenue generated from this tax increase would be transferred annually to support career and technical education through the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, providing additional funding to states for job training and apprenticeship programs. The tax change takes effect for the taxable year beginning 12 months after the bill becomes law, giving institutions advance notice before the higher rate applies.

The Servicemember Residence Protection Act of 2026 protects military members from losing their homes to "squatters' rights." The bill amends federal law to prevent the time a person serves in the military from counting toward the legal requirement for adverse possession, which is a process where someone can gain ownership of property through long-term occupation without the owner's permission. This protection applies to all members of the uniformed services and their real property. Within 45 days of the law's enactment, the Department of Veterans Affairs must update its website and coordinate with the Attorney General to provide military members with resources about securing their homes while deployed, leasing options, and landlord-tenant rights. The bill contains no specific funding authorization or timeline beyond the initial website update requirement.

This bill amends federal law to allow police departments and law enforcement agencies to use existing grant money from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program to create and run special task forces focused on preventing financial crimes against seniors aged 60 and older. These task forces would investigate scams, fraud, and financial exploitation targeting elderly people and could coordinate with local police, state prosecutors, adult protective services, and federal agencies like the FBI and Federal Trade Commission. The bill requires organizations receiving these grants to report detailed information about their work, including how many cases they started and resolved, how many victims they helped, what types of scams were involved, and whether any cases involved organized or international crime networks. The Attorney General must then compile this information and submit an annual summary report to Congress. The legislation does not create new funding but redirects existing grant money to this specific elder fraud prevention purpose.

This Senate resolution recognizes Father's Day, which is celebrated on the third Sunday of June, and acknowledges the important role fathers play in their children's lives. The resolution highlights research showing that children with engaged fathers tend to have better emotional and social well-being, higher educational achievement, and greater economic stability, while also being less likely to repeat grades, end up in the criminal justice system, or experience teen pregnancy or mental health disorders. Conversely, the resolution notes that children without present or engaged fathers are overrepresented among runaway youth, juveniles in state institutions, and those living in poverty. The Senate formally acknowledges the critical importance of fathers providing continuous physical and emotional support to their families and wishes all fathers and father figures in the United States a happy Father's Day. This is a ceremonial resolution with no funding, programs, or legal requirements attached to it.

The Stop Child Care Scams Act of 2026 strengthens federal oversight and enforcement mechanisms to combat fraud in child care assistance programs. The bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to mandatory withhold funds from states that fail to comply with fraud prevention requirements, rather than giving them discretion to do so. It establishes stricter accountability measures for states, including requirements to develop robust internal controls, investigate fraudulent payments, and permanently debar child care providers found guilty of fraud from receiving federal assistance. States with improper payment rates exceeding 5 percent must submit corrective action plans, and those exceeding this threshold for two consecutive years face potential loss of federal funding unless they demonstrate improvement. The legislation also mandates the Government Accountability Office to study fraud prevention practices across early childhood education and child care programs within two years and submit recommendations to Congress, while removing the ability of federal officials to waive sanctions against noncompliant states.

This bill would prevent manufacturers and sellers of stone slab products (such as kitchen countertops) from being sued in civil court for injuries workers suffer from silica dust exposure during the fabrication process. The legislation applies only to cases where third-party fabricators alter these products and expose their own employees to silica dust, not situations where manufacturers were the direct employers. Congress argues in the bill that fabricators, not product makers, are responsible for worker safety since federal and state workplace safety laws already regulate how fabrication must be done. The bill would dismiss all pending lawsuits of this type that are currently in court. Supporters contend the measure protects a lawful industry employing tens of thousands of Americans from what they characterize as frivolous litigation, while critics might argue it shields manufacturers from accountability when their products cause workplace injuries.

The LEO K9 Protection Act amends federal law to increase criminal penalties for harming police animals, particularly dogs and horses used in law enforcement and military operations. Anyone who injures or kills a police animal using a deadly or dangerous weapon faces up to 15 years in prison and fines. The bill also requires the Department of Transportation to develop guidance within 180 days for emergency medical services personnel on how to care for injured police dogs in the field, and to issue regulations within 240 days allowing paramedics and emergency medical technicians to transport injured police dogs to veterinary facilities and provide emergency medical care. The legislation covers animals working for federal, state, county, and local law enforcement agencies, as well as those in military service, but includes a protection for people who provide good-faith emergency veterinary care to injured police animals.

This Senate resolution recognizes the 175th anniversary of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority, which was founded on May 15, 1851, as the Adelphean Society at Wesleyan Female College in Macon, Georgia, making it the first secret society for college women. The sorority now has over 290,000 lifetime members across more than 220 chapters at colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, along with 165 active alumnae associations headquartered in Atlanta. The resolution highlights the organization's contributions to society, noting that members include Emmy Award winners, Grammy Award winners, bestselling authors, Olympic athletes, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, and sitting members of Congress, and that the sorority raises over one million dollars annually for Ronald McDonald House while members volunteer over 300,000 community service hours each year. The resolution congratulates the sorority on its milestone and acknowledges its members' commitment to personal growth, leadership, education, and community service. There is no funding or budgetary impact associated with this recognition resolution, which was introduced on May 14, 2026, ahead of the sorority's 175th Anniversary Grand Convention scheduled for June 17-20, 2026, in Palm Desert, California.

The PRESS Act (Preventing Rogue Equipment for Synthetic Substances Act) amends federal drug law to criminalize the manufacture and distribution of pill press machines and related equipment when intended for making illegal drugs that will be smuggled into the United States. The bill closes a gap in current law by specifically targeting manufacturers and distributors of these machines who knowingly or reasonably should know their equipment will be used to produce counterfeit pills containing controlled substances for illegal importation. Violations carry prison sentences ranging from 8 to 20 years depending on the offense type and quantity involved, with longer sentences of up to 15 years for larger operations involving more than 1,000 kilograms of chemicals or over 100 machines. The law applies to pill presses, encapsulation machines, punch dies, capsules, and related materials used in drug manufacturing. The United States Sentencing Commission is directed to update federal sentencing guidelines accordingly to implement the new penalties.

No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026This bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to establish an identity fraud detection system for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).Beginning on October 1, 2026, ED must use an identity fraud detection system to review each submitted application to determine whether the applicant presents a reasonable suspicion of identity fraud. If ED makes such a determination, it must notify the applicant and each institution of higher education (IHE) designated on the application that the applicant is subject to additional identity verification.An IHE may not disburse federal financial aid to an applicant that presents a reasonable suspicion of fraud unless the IHE verifies the applicant's identity in person or by live video. If the applicant's identity is confirmed, the IHE must notify ED that the applicant's identity has been verified.ED must establish guidelines for the identity verification procedures conducted by IHEs.(On April 26, 2026, ED began implementing a real-time identity fraud detection process within the FAFSA form that places applicants into one of four risk categories. High-risk applicants must confirm their identity by presenting documentation during the online application process, including via a live camera process. Applicants who are rejected via this automated process must then have their identity verified in person by IHEs.)

Fostering Learning and Excellence in Charter Schools Act or the FLEX ActThis bill expands and revises the Charter Schools Program (CSP), including by expanding the allowable uses of CSP funds.Current law authorizes competitive grants to state entities (e.g., state educational agencies and state charter school boards) and, through them, subgrants to eligible applicants (i.e., charter school developers) to enable them to open and prepare for the operation of a new charter school or replicate or expand an existing high-quality charter school. The bill allows subgrants to also be used for adding or expanding programs or other offerings at these schools, such as through the adoption of new academic programs or delivery models, personalized learning, or a new curricular approach. New offerings must enable additional students to enroll in and benefit from the school.Eligible applicants may also use CSP funds for activities such as hiring and compensating teachers and other school staff (currently, this may only occur during the planning period);carrying out necessary renovations, upgrades, or facility repairs, or acquiring portable classrooms; andproviding transportation to students (currently, only one-time, start-up transportation costs are permitted).Eligible applicants may request and receive advance payments of subgrants.Among other requirements, the Department of Education must (1) use CSP funds for additional activities (e.g., increasing the number of available seats in charter schools that serve rural students and students with disabilities), and (2) consult with charter school operators prior to issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking relevant to charter schools.