Mike Rounds

This bill establishes a centralized online system called the Portal for Appraiser Credentialing and AMC Registration Information to streamline how appraisers and appraisal management companies apply for and renew licenses and certifications. The portal, which will be maintained by the Appraisal Subcommittee, will allow state licensing agencies to access applicant information including education records, exam results, and background checks, while also processing fees and issuing letters of good standing. The system will facilitate criminal background checks by allowing the Appraisal Subcommittee to serve as an intermediary between states and the FBI, reducing bureaucratic touchpoints. States will retain full authority to make independent decisions on applications and renewals, and can continue to collect state-specific fees. The bill authorizes the Appraisal Subcommittee to charge user fees to appraisers and companies using the portal to cover development and maintenance costs, and to provide grants to state agencies to help them connect their systems to the new portal.

The Gene Murphy Veterans' Bill of Rights Act of 2026 requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to allow veterans to request a second opinion on any health care they receive from the VA. When a veteran requests a second opinion, the VA must either refer them to another VA health care provider or to a community provider outside the VA system, including through the existing Veterans Community Care Program. The bill ensures that the VA will cover all costs associated with obtaining these second opinions at no expense to the veteran. This legislation gives veterans greater control over their health care decisions and access to additional medical perspectives when they want them. The bill does not specify an implementation timeline or additional funding amounts beyond requiring the VA to absorb the costs of second opinion services.

This bill restricts executive compensation and benefits at the U.S. Postal Service. It prohibits senior USPS executives, including the Postmaster General and Deputy Postmaster General, from receiving certain fringe benefits such as wellness reimbursements, parking allowances, financial planning services, trusted traveler program fees, airline club memberships, and relocation expenses. The bill also caps total compensation for any USPS officer or executive at the level paid to the President of the United States and bans the Postmaster General from receiving bonuses in years when the Postal Service spends more money than it takes in. Additionally, the legislation prevents the Postal Service from circumventing these restrictions by providing increased base pay or other forms of compensation as substitutes for prohibited benefits. The bill applies to covered executives who receive prohibited benefits after the law takes effect, requiring them to reimburse the Postal Service for the value of those benefits. Rank-and-file employee benefits and union-negotiated benefits remain unaffected.

The ARCH Act establishes a Department of Defense records preservation program for Afghan allies who helped the United States during its military presence in Afghanistan. Eligible individuals include members of Afghan military and security forces, intelligence personnel, judges and prosecutors involved in rule of law activities, and other government officials who served for at least one year between December 2001 and September 2021. The Secretary of Defense must create a secure online application system within 180 days of the bill's enactment that allows applicants or their designees to submit documentation from anywhere outside the United States. The Department will review applications against its records and biometric data, and if approved without significant derogatory information, will preserve the complete application file for potential future use by the applicant. Applicants denied classification receive written explanations and can appeal once within 120 days, with the option to request reconsideration with additional information. The application process will run for at least 10 years or until the Secretary determines termination is in the national interest.

The Rebuilding America's National Cow Herd Act creates a new federal program that pays landowners and farmers to convert cropland into pasture for cattle grazing. Eligible participants must have land that was actively farmed for at least four of the previous six years, and they agree to restore it with perennial grasses and native plants for grazing use under a contract lasting ten to fifteen years. The program offers three types of payments: annual rental payments equal to 75 percent of the typical local crop rental rate, cost-sharing payments covering half the expense of planting native grasses, and additional incentive payments for using high-quality seed mixes or for beginning farmers and ranchers. The program prioritizes beginning farmers, those with existing livestock operations, land prone to erosion, and properties that support wildlife habitat, with enrollment capped at 20 million acres nationwide. The bill allows landowners to earn up to $155,000 annually per person and requires the Department of Agriculture to provide technical assistance for grazing management plans and monitor the restored grasslands throughout each contract period.

This bill aims to strengthen the U.S. robotics industry by directing federal agencies to support development and adoption of robotic technologies. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is tasked with identifying barriers to robotics expansion, promoting industry use of robots, developing technical standards particularly for emerging applications like humanoid robots and artificial intelligence integration, and coordinating workforce training programs with education and labor officials. The bill also requires the Commerce Department to submit annual reports for five years assessing how quickly companies across different industries and regions are adopting robotics, what barriers exist to adoption, and how robotics affects workers and job skills. Additionally, NASA is directed to prioritize licensing its robotics-related inventions and patents to private companies to help boost the domestic robotics industry, with a report due within 180 days on commercialization efforts. The legislation does not specify dedicated funding amounts but creates various reporting and coordination requirements starting within 90 days of enactment.

The REACH Our Tribes Act establishes new requirements for the Department of Agriculture to consult with Tribal Governments on an annual basis regarding budget requests and multi-year agriculture program reauthorizations, such as farm bills. The bill requires the Secretary of Agriculture to create a formal consultation process within one year, provide tribal nations with at least 30 days' notice before consultations, and publicly report on issues discussed and actions taken in response to tribal input. Additionally, the legislation directs the Agriculture Department to analyze and report on funding available to tribal entities through existing programs and identify ways to improve outreach and technical assistance for underutilized programs. The bill also establishes an interagency task force involving the Departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and Commerce to streamline application requirements and reduce administrative burdens for tribal economic development programs, and mandates the Commerce Department create a comprehensive public database of all federal economic development programs available to tribal entities, to be updated at least every two years. The legislation does not specify direct appropriations but requires these initiatives to be completed and operational within 12 months of enactment.

S. 5211 requires the Department of Defense to develop a comprehensive strategy for strengthening cyber cooperation with U.S. allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region. Within 180 days of enactment, the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff must submit this strategy to Congress and begin implementing it in coordination with U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and U.S. Cyber Command. The strategy must address current and projected cyber cooperation needs through 2040, identify gaps in existing cyber partnerships, assess the cybersecurity capabilities and standards of regional allies and partners, and recommend actions to improve cyber coordination and interoperability across the region. The bill also requires the Defense Department to submit a funding plan within 180 days detailing how the strategy will be resourced and to report to Congress on implementation progress by March 15, 2028, including any barriers encountered and additional resources needed.

This bill directs the Department of Defense to accelerate the development and deployment of quantum technologies to strengthen U.S. national security and technological competitiveness. Within 60 days of enactment, the Secretary of Defense must identify three next-generation quantum sensor projects with the goal of having them operational by September 30, 2028. The bill also requires multiple federal agencies—Defense, Commerce, Energy, and the National Science Foundation—to jointly develop a plan within 120 days to encourage private sector partnerships in quantum technology development, potentially through incentives like prize competitions or advance market commitments, while identifying any legal or administrative barriers to overcome. Additionally, the Defense Department has 180 days to improve domestic access to federal quantum research facilities and strengthen supply chains for critical quantum technology components. The legislation reflects growing concern about quantum technology's strategic importance and aims to ensure the United States maintains leadership in this emerging field.

The Homestake AI Act of 2026 directs the Department of Energy to establish a program to collect and sequence the complete genomes of extremophile organisms—animals, plants, fungi, and microbes that thrive in extreme environments like deep mines—to advance scientific discovery and develop new treatments for cancer, diabetes, and dementia. The initiative requires the department to identify at least five collection locations within 180 days, including at least one underground mine deeper than 4,500 feet, and to create a comprehensive genomic database accessible to U.S. researchers while restricting access from foreign adversaries. The legislation mandates construction of a secure, disaster-resistant long-term storage facility within one year to preserve biological samples collected over a five-year period, with sample management coordinated across the Smithsonian Institution, the Department of Agriculture, and other federal agencies. The bill authorizes unspecified appropriations for the program and establishes a working group to coordinate research efforts with allied nations including Australia, Japan, South Korea, and European Union members to avoid duplicative spending and maximize scientific collaboration.

This bill would ban a specific abortion procedure called dismemberment abortion, which involves using instruments like forceps or scissors to remove fetal parts from the uterus. Physicians who perform this procedure would face criminal penalties of up to two years in prison and fines, though an exception is included for procedures necessary to save the mother's life. The bill also creates civil remedies allowing women, parents of minors, or others to sue those who perform the procedure, with potential awards for damages including three times the cost of the abortion plus punitive damages and attorney's fees. Women who undergo the procedure would not face criminal prosecution themselves. The legislation does not restrict other abortion methods and explicitly preserves the right to perform abortions for any reason, including in cases of rape or incest, as long as a different method is used.

In the nature of a substitute.

The amendment introduces specific provisions to enhance oversight and accountability in the existing legislation, including the establishment of new reporting requirements and the allocation of additional resources for compliance monitoring. These changes aim to strengthen the enforcement mechanisms and improve transparency in the implementation of the law.

The Small Business Investor Capital Access Act modifies federal rules governing private investment fund advisers, specifically raising the asset threshold that determines whether certain advisers must register with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The bill increases this threshold from $150 million to $175 million in assets under management, making it easier for smaller private fund advisers to operate without full SEC registration and reporting requirements. Additionally, the legislation requires the SEC to automatically adjust this dollar threshold every five years to account for inflation, ensuring the rule stays current over time. This change primarily affects private equity firms, venture capital funds, and similar investment advisers managing between $150 million and $175 million in assets, as well as their investors. The bill includes no specific funding requirements, as it is primarily a regulatory adjustment rather than an appropriations measure.

S. 3736 directs the Secretary of the Interior, working through the Bureau of Reclamation, to conduct a feasibility study on constructing the Dakota Mainstem Water Supply Project, which would deliver municipal, rural, and industrial water to communities in South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Minnesota. The Secretary must partner with the Dakota Mainstem Regional Water System, Inc., a nonprofit serving as the non-federal project entity, and enter into a cost-sharing agreement in which the federal government covers no more than 50 percent of study costs, with total federal spending capped at $10 million. Within 90 days of enactment, the Secretary must identify funding sources for the federal share, and after the study is complete, must produce a public report recommending whether the project is technically and financially feasible, whether it should be authorized for construction, and what the non-federal cost share for construction (at least 25 percent) should be. This report goes to relevant House and Senate committees and must be made publicly available along with supporting study documents. The authority to conduct the study expires five years after the bill becomes law, and the Secretary is also required to consult with federal, state, tribal, regional, and local authorities throughout the process.

The Life at Conception Act of 2026 seeks to establish federal protections for what it defines as "human beings" from the moment of fertilization, asserting that this right to life applies equally under the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause. The bill declares that Congress has constitutional authority to implement this protection for both born and preborn persons, extending the definition of "human person" to include all stages of human life beginning at fertilization or cloning. Notably, the legislation includes explicit carve-outs stating it does not require prosecution of women for miscarriage, prohibit in vitro fertilization, or ban birth control or contraception. The bill applies federal protections across all U.S. states, territories, and the District of Columbia. No specific funding or implementation timeline is detailed in the text provided; the bill was introduced in January 2026 and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Financial Stability Oversight Council Improvement Act of 2025This bill requires the Financial Stability Oversight Council, prior to determining that a U.S. nonbank financial company shall be supervised by the Federal Reserve Board and therefore subject to certain prudential standards, to first determine that certain alternative actions would not mitigate the threat the company may pose to U.S. financial stability.

This bill directs the Securities and Exchange Commission to expand what counts as a "qualifying investment" for venture capital fund advisers who are exempt from certain registration requirements. Specifically, it would allow venture capital funds to count equity securities directly issued by companies in their portfolios and investments in other venture capital funds as qualifying investments. The bill also adds a restriction limiting venture capital funds to holding no more than 49 percent of their capital in other venture capital funds or in secondary acquisitions (investments purchased from other investors rather than directly from companies). The SEC must complete these regulatory changes within 180 days of the bill's enactment. Overall, the legislation is designed to provide venture capital funds with greater flexibility in how they structure their investments while maintaining certain safeguards against excessive concentration in indirect investments.