Bills Most Written About In The News - OpenCongress

All Legislation in Congress

Hot Bills at a Glance

Economy 1 of 12
Track H.R.3548

H.R.3548 - Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009
This bill would extend unemployment insurance benefits by 13 weeks in states that have jobless rates above 8.5 percent. A list of unemployment rates state-by-state can be seen here. For more information, please see the OpenCongress Wiki article on Emergency Unemployment Compensation.

Bill Is Law Nov 06, 2009
Sponsor Rep. James McDermott [D, WA-7]
Energy/Environment 2 of 12
Track H.R.2454

H.R.2454 - American Clean Energy And Security Act of 2009
This is the Waxman-Markley comprehensive energy bill, known for short as "ACES," that includes a cap-and-trade global warming reduction plan designed to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions 17 percent by 2020. Other provisions include new renewable requirements for utilities, studies and incentives regarding new carbon captur...

House Passed Jul 07, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Henry Waxman [D, CA-30]
Taxes 3 of 12
Track H.R.25

H.R.25 - Fair Tax Act of 2009
Resurfacing for the 6th consecutive congressional session, this bill strives to repeal the income tax, employment tax, and estate and gift tax, and to replace them with a national sales tax at a rate of 23%. It sets forth provisions for the states’ collection of sales tax revenues and the Treasury’s handling of the remittances of such ...

Introduced Jan 06, 2009
Sponsor Rep. John Linder [R, GA-7]
Health 4 of 12
Track H.R.3962

H.R.3962 - Affordable Health Care for America Act
This is the House health care bill that was approved by the House of Representatives on Nov. 7, 2009. Broadly, it seeks to expand health care coverage to the approximately 40 million Americans who are currently uninsured by lowering the cost of health care and making the system more efficient. To that end, it includes a new governm...

House Passed Nov 16, 2009
Sponsor Rep. John Dingell [D, MI-15]
Guns 5 of 12
Track H.R.17

H.R.17 - Citizens' Self-Defense Act of 2009
In correlation with the restrictions outlined by the 1993 Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, this bill protects and provides context for the possession and use of fire arms, namely in defense of the self or family (or, when relevant, the home) against a reasonably perceived threat of unlawful bodily injury or violent felony. It als...

Introduced Feb 09, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Roscoe Bartlett [R, MD-6]
Technology 6 of 12
Track S.773

S.773 - Cybersecurity Act of 2009
This is comprehensive legislation designed to address our nation's vulnerabilities to cyber crime, global cyber espionage, and cyber attacks. It would establish a new Cybersecurity Advisory Panel within the White House and stream-line the cybersecurity effort through all levels of government. The bill also calls on the Department of Co...

Introduced Apr 01, 2009
Sponsor Sen. John Rockefeller [D, WV]
Criminal Justice 7 of 12
Track H.R.1913

H.R.1913 - Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009
This bill, previously introduced in Congress in 2007, seeks to expand upon the 1969 US federal hate-crime law by extending beyond federally-protected activities and towards bodily crimes motivated by a victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability, in addition to the current provisions of ...

House Passed Apr 30, 2009
Sponsor Rep. John Conyers [D, MI-14]
Government/Transparency 8 of 12
Track H.R.1207

H.R.1207 - Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009
This bill would repeal special audit protections for the Federal Reserve (31 USC 714 – Sec. 714) and calls for a full Government Accountability Office audit of the central bank to be completed before the end of 2010 and submitted to Congress for review. More background and info here.

Introduced Sep 25, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Ronald Paul [R, TX-14]
Guns 9 of 12
Track H.R.197

H.R.197 - National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2009
This bill would create a national standard allowing a person to carry a concealed weapon in a state in which they are not a resident, given that they have a valid permit and are in accordance with that state’s and this bill’s restrictions.

Introduced Feb 09, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Clifford Stearns [R, FL-6]
Economy 10 of 12
Track H.R.627

H.R.627 - Credit CARD Act of 2009
Broadly, this bill seeks to establish transparency between all actors participating in the consumer credit market. More specifically, it seeks to restrict unfair interest rate hikes, fees and penalties. It also bans credit card companies from knowingly issuing cards to people under the age of 18. Furthermore, it calls for the broad dis...

Bill Is Law May 22, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Carolyn Maloney [D, NY-14]
Immigration 11 of 12
Track H.R.264

H.R.264 - Save America Comprehensive Immigration Act of 2009
This legislation seeks to provide increased protection and eligibility for family-sponsored immigrants. Eligibility is extended by doubling the number of available visas from 480,000 to 960,000, by offering legalization to aliens who have been in the US for five years or are children, and by providing undocumented Haitians in the US wi...

Introduced Feb 09, 2009
Sponsor Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee [D, TX-18]
Immigration 12 of 12
Track S.729

S.729 - DREAM Act of 2009
This bill would give states the authority to repeal the denial of an unlawful alien’s eligibility for higher education benefits, which have been previously tied state-residency. Additionally, it allows for the adjustment from status of alien to conditional permanent resident and outlines the criteria for such an adjustment by the Secre...

Introduced Mar 26, 2009
Sponsor Sen. Richard Durbin [D, IL]

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