[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 181 (Thursday, November 2, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5340-S5342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. THUNE (for himself and Mr. Warner):
  S. 3202. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 
an alternative manner of furnishing certain health insurance coverage 
statements to individuals; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 3202

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Paperwork Burden Reduction 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. ALTERNATIVE MANNER OF FURNISHING CERTAIN HEALTH 
                   INSURANCE COVERAGE STATEMENTS TO INDIVIDUALS.

       (a) Reporting of Health Insurance Coverage.--Section 
     6055(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(3) Alternative manner of furnishing statements.--For 
     purposes of this subsection, any person required to make a 
     return under subsection (a) shall be treated as timely 
     furnishing the written statement required under paragraph (1) 
     if--
       ``(A) such person provides clear, conspicuous, and 
     accessible notice (at such time and in such manner as the 
     Secretary may provide) that any individual to whom a 
     statement would otherwise be required to be furnished under 
     paragraph (1) may request a copy of such statement, and
       ``(B) such person, on request of any such individual, 
     furnishes a copy of such statement to such individual not 
     later than the later of--
       ``(i) January 31 of the year following the calendar year 
     for which the return under subsection (a) was required to be 
     made, or
       ``(ii) 30 days after the date of such request.''.
       (b) Certain Employers Required to Report on Health 
     Insurance Coverage.--Section 6056(c) of such Code is amended 
     by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(3) Alternative manner of furnishing statements.--For 
     purposes of this subsection, any person required to make a 
     return under subsection (a) shall be treated as timely 
     furnishing the written statement required under paragraph (1) 
     if--
       ``(A) such person provides clear, conspicuous, and 
     accessible notice (at such time and in such manner as the 
     Secretary may provide) that any individual to whom a 
     statement would otherwise be required to be furnished under 
     paragraph (1) may request a copy of such statement, and
       ``(B) such person, on request of any such individual, 
     furnishes a copy of such statement to such individual not 
     later than the later of--
       ``(i) January 31 of the year following the calendar year 
     for which the return under subsection (a) was required to be 
     made, or
       ``(ii) 30 days after the date of such request.''.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply to statements with respect to returns for 
     calendar years after 2023.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Booker, Ms. Collins, 
        Mr. Carper, Ms. Ernst, Mr. Coons, Mr. Rounds, Ms. Duckworth, 
        Mr. Thune, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Tillis, Ms. Sinema, Mr. Wicker, Mr. 
        Wyden, and Mr. Young):
  S. 3211. A bill to enhance our Nation's nurse and physician workforce 
by recapturing unused immigrant visas; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.
  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was oredered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 3211

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Healthcare Workforce 
     Resilience Act''.

     SEC. 2. RECAPTURING UNUSED IMMIGRANT VISAS FOR PROFESSIONAL 
                   NURSES AND PHYSICIANS.

       Section 106(d) of the American Competitiveness in the 
     Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 (title I of Public Law 106-
     313; 8 U.S.C. 1153 note) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(d) Recapture of Unused Employment-Based Immigrant 
     Visas.--
       ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), and 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law, the number of 
     employment-based visas made available under section 203(b) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)) shall 
     be increased by the number calculated in paragraph (3).
       ``(2) Limitations.--
       ``(A) In general.--Visas may only be made available under 
     this subsection for up to 40,000 employment-based immigrants 
     (and their family members accompanying or following to join 
     under section 203(d) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(d))) whose 
     immigrant worker petitions are filed not later than 3 years 
     after the date of the enactment of the Healthcare Workforce 
     Resilience Act.
       ``(B) Reservations.--Of the visas authorized under 
     subparagraph (A)--

[[Page S5341]]

       ``(i) 25,000 shall be reserved for professional nurses; and
       ``(ii) 15,000 shall be reserved for physicians.
       ``(C) Exemption from country caps.--Visas made available 
     under this subsection--
       ``(i) shall not be subject to the per country numerical 
     limitation set forth in section 202(a)(2) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2)); and
       ``(ii) shall be issued in order of the priority date 
     assigned at the time the visa petition was filed.
       ``(D) Additional limitation.--Visas may only be made 
     available under this subsection to a beneficiary and such 
     beneficiary's dependents if visas are not otherwise 
     immediately available to such individuals pursuant to the 
     worldwide and per country allocations set forth in sections 
     202(a)(2) and 203(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2) and 1153(b)).
       ``(3) Number available.--
       ``(A) Unused visas.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the 
     number calculated in this paragraph is the difference 
     between--
       ``(i) the total number of employment-based visas that were 
     made available in fiscal years 1992 through 2021; and
       ``(ii) the total number of such visas that were used in 
     such fiscal years.
       ``(B) Reduction and limitation.--The number described in 
     subparagraph (A) shall be reduced, for each fiscal year 
     following the fiscal year during which the Healthcare 
     Workforce Resilience Act is enacted, by the cumulative number 
     of immigrant visas used pursuant to paragraph (1).
       ``(C) Family members.--
       ``(i) In general.--Family members described in section 
     203(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1153(d)) who are accompanying or following to join a 
     principal beneficiary seeking admission under this subsection 
     shall be entitled to an unreserved visa in the same status 
     and in the same order of consideration as such principal 
     beneficiary.
       ``(ii) Exempt from skill-based numerical limitation.--Visas 
     described in clause (i)--

       ``(I) shall be made available from the pool of recaptured 
     unused immigrant visas calculated under subparagraph (A); and
       ``(II) shall not be counted against the total number of 
     immigrant visas reserved for professional nurses and 
     physicians under paragraph (2).

       ``(D) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this paragraph may 
     be construed as affecting the application of section 
     201(c)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1151(c)(3)(C)).
       ``(4) Premium processing; expedited processing.--
       ``(A) Premium processing.--The Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, in conjunction with the Secretary of State, shall 
     provide premium processing procedures, as provided for under 
     section 286(u) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1356(u)), for reviewing and acting upon petitions and 
     applications for immigrants described in paragraph (2). 
     Notwithstanding such section, U.S. Citizenship and 
     Immigration Services may not charge a premium fee for such 
     services.
       ``(B) Shipping petitions.--The Director of U.S. Citizenship 
     and Immigration Services shall expedite the shipping of each 
     petition described in subparagraph (A) requiring consular 
     processing to the Department of State immediately after--
       ``(i) the completed petition has been resolved; and
       ``(ii) the petitioner has replied to any request from U.S. 
     Citizenship and Immigration Services for additional evidence.
       ``(C) Expedited processing.--The Secretary of State shall 
     expedite the processing of applications for immigrants 
     described in paragraph (2) after receiving a petition on 
     behalf of such immigrants from U.S. Citizenship and 
     Immigration Services.
       ``(5) Labor attestation.--Before an immigrant visa reserved 
     under paragraph (2)(B)(i) is issued to an alien, the 
     petitioner shall attest, in the job offer letter presented by 
     the alien to a consular officer during the consular interview 
     or to the Department of Homeland Security as an application 
     for an adjustment of status, that the hiring of the alien has 
     not displaced and will not displace a United States 
     worker.''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Daines, Mr. Tester, 
        Ms. Rosen, Ms. Cortez Masto, and Mr. Heinrich):
  S. 3221. A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a 
special limitation on pay for wildland fire responders, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs.
  Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, I rise to introduce the Wildland 
Firefighter Fair Pay Act to permanently increase the pay caps of some 
of the United States' most hard-working employees, who risk their lives 
to keep our communities safe and manage the land from severe wildfire.
  In every State, we rely on Federal firefighters who spend weeks to 
months away from their families in dangerous conditions. As fire season 
turns into a year-round issue, firefighters must be compensated for 
their overtime work that grows each year.
  The Wildland Firefighter Fair Pay Act would increase the overtime pay 
caps Federal wildland firefighters and adjust for the new proposed pay 
scale.
  This overtime pay cap increase boost the Federal Agencies' ability to 
recruit Federal wildland firefighters and avoid firefighters walking 
off the line midincident or leaving for other opportunities.
  As it stands, current United States Code limits wildland 
firefighters' premium pay and hurts Federal Agencies' ability to 
recruit and retain firefighters.
  Building off the bipartisan infrastructure law, a bipartisan group of 
Senators and the White House are working to ensure that our wildland 
firefighters are compensated appropriately for their intense line of 
work. The ``Wlldfand Firefighter Fair Pay Act'' complements these 
efforts by ensuring that any pay bump would not be limited by a pay 
cap.
  I would like to thank Senators Steve Daines, Martin Heinrich, Ben Ray 
Lujan, Catherine Cortez Masto, Jacky Rosen, and Jon Tester for joining 
me in introducing this bill, as well as Representative Zoe Lofgren for 
championing this bill in the House.
  Lastly, we owe these efforts to California's Late Senator Dianne 
Feinstein, who had written the original bill. We must continue Senator 
Feinstein's legacy of supporting our firefighters and investing in 
wildfire mitigation efforts across the country by permanently 
increasing the premium pay cap.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this necessary 
legislation to improve pay for Federal firefighters.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. THUNE (for himself and Mr. Carper):
  S. 3224. A bill to codify Internal Revenue Service guidance relating 
to treatment of certain services and items for chronic conditions as 
meeting the preventive care deductible safe harbor for purposes of high 
deductible health plans in connection with health savings accounts; to 
the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 3224

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Chronic Disease Flexible 
     Coverage Act''.

     SEC. 2. SERVICES AND ITEMS FOR CHRONIC CONDITIONS TREATED AS 
                   PREVENTIVE CARE.

       (a) In General.--The additional preventive care services 
     and items for chronic conditions that may be treated as 
     preventive care for purposes of section 223(c)(2)(C) of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as set forth in IRS Notice 
     2019-45 shall have the same force and effect as if included 
     in the enactment of this Act.
       (b) No Inference.--To the extent not inconsistent with this 
     subsection, no inference shall be made from such subsection 
     with respect to such other rules or guidance as the Secretary 
     has provided, or may provide, with respect to preventive 
     services for purposes of section 223(c)(2)(C) of such Code.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. MANCHIN (for himself, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Risch, 
        Ms. Hirono, and Mr. Boozman):
  S.J. Res. 48. A joint resolution to approve the 2023 Agreement to 
Amend the U.S.-FSM Compact, and related agreements, between the 
Government of the United States of America and the Government of the 
Federated States of Micronesia, and the 2023 Agreement to Amend the 
U.S.-RMI Compact, and certain related agreements between the Government 
of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of 
the Marshall Islands, and the 2023 U.S.-Palau Compact Review Agreement 
between the Government of the United States of America and the 
Government of the Republic of Palau, to appropriate funds to carry out 
the agreements, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources.
  Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, today, I have joined Senators Manchin, 
Risch, Cardin, Boozman, and Hirono in introducing the Compacts of Free 
Association Amendments Act of 2023. In the House of Representatives, 
Congressmen Westerman, Grijalva, McCaul, and Meeks are introducing 
identical legislation.
  This legislation renews the compact agreements between the United 
States and the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, 
and the Federated States of Micronesia, commonly referred to as the 
Freely Associated States.
  This legislation will protect American interests in the Pacific and 
block

[[Page S5342]]

China's efforts to expand its influence. The Compacts of Free 
Association give the United States exclusive military authority over 
the Freely Associated States' lands and waters. This authority 
guarantees that our military can operate bases on the islands and deny 
access to any potential adversaries in the region. This is critical 
because Chinese aggression in the region is an ever-present danger.
  China is expanding its power in the Indo-Pacific and is threatening 
the Freely Associated States. China is actively trying to upset the 
security and power dynamic in the region and threaten Taiwan. In March 
of this year, the outgoing President of the Federated States of 
Micronesia outlined Chinese attempts to undermine his country's ties to 
the United States through bribery and threatening public officials. 
China has also tried to use aggressive and coercive actions against the 
economies of the Republic of Palau and the Republic of the Marshall 
Islands by threatening their tourism and fishing industries.
  Today's introduction is a positive step. The House Natural Resources 
Committee intends to mark, up this legislation in order for it be 
included in the National Defense Authorization Act, NDAA. The Senate 
has already included language in the NDAA supporting renewal of the 
compacts. One important issue that is not addressed in this bill is how 
the legislation will be paid for. The question of a spending offset 
needs to be addressed as the bill makes its way through the legislative 
process.

                          ____________________