Josh Riley

FAIR Data Act

The proposal would prevent certain electric utilities from passing the costs of operating data centers on to their regular customers through utility bills. This affects both utility companies that operate data centers and the everyday people and businesses that pay for electricity, potentially keeping their rates lower by separating data center expenses from standard utility costs. The bill is currently under review by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Rural Investment for Producers and the Environment (RIPE) Act of 2026

The proposal would direct federal funding and resources toward agricultural projects in rural areas that aim to improve both farm productivity and environmental conservation. Farmers and rural communities would gain access to grants, technical assistance, and incentive programs for practices like soil health improvement, water management, and wildlife habitat protection. The legislation targets agricultural producers of various sizes while supporting environmental stewardship across farmland and rural regions.

No Taxes on Utility Bills Act

This bill would prevent the federal government from taxing utility bills for electricity, gas, water, and other essential services that households rely on. The measure would affect both individual consumers and utility companies by removing or preventing any federal taxes that might be applied to these basic services. The bill is currently under review by the House Committee on Ways and Means, which handles tax legislation.

NSF Plant Biology Act

This bill would increase funding and support for plant biology research through the National Science Foundation, helping scientists study how plants grow, adapt to climate change, and develop new crops. The funding would support university research programs and help train the next generation of plant scientists, which could lead to advances in agriculture, food security, and environmental protection. The bill is currently being reviewed by the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.

Veteran Housing Promise Act

This bill aims to improve housing assistance and support for veterans returning to civilian life. It likely addresses issues like affordable housing access, down payment assistance, or housing vouchers for former military members who may struggle to find stable homes after service. The legislation would affect veterans and potentially their families as they transition out of the military.

Increasing Nutrition Access for Seniors Act of 2025

The legislation would expand nutrition assistance programs for older Americans, likely increasing funding or eligibility for food support services that help seniors afford healthy meals. This would affect millions of seniors on fixed incomes who struggle to buy groceries, as well as the organizations and programs that deliver meals to elderly people in their communities.

Cracking Down on Price Gouging Act

The proposal would give federal authorities new powers to investigate and penalize energy companies that dramatically raise prices during emergencies or supply shortages. It would allow the government to impose fines on companies found to be unfairly inflating prices for gasoline, heating oil, natural gas, and electricity when consumers are most vulnerable. This would affect energy producers and suppliers, while potentially protecting households and businesses from sudden price spikes during crises.

To amend the Department of Energy Research and Innovation Act to direct the Secretary of Energy to coordinate with certain Federal officials to conduct research, development, testing, and evaluation of novel technologies to detect fentanyl vapor or particles in support of rapid screening of the mails, at prisons, at United States borders, and in other related use cases, and for other purposes.

The federal government would fund research to develop new technology that can quickly detect fentanyl vapor or particles in mail, prisons, and at borders to help stop the drug from entering the country. The Department of Energy would work with other federal agencies to test and improve these detection methods. This would help law enforcement and prison officials identify fentanyl shipments faster and protect public safety.

Future FARMER Act

Future Funding for Agricultural Research, Mentorship, and Education Reauthorization Act or the Future FARMER Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2029 National Institute of Food and Agriculture grants and fellowships for food and agriculture science education. This includes programs such as the (1) Higher Education Challenge Grants Program, (2) Agriculture in the Classroom Program, and (3) National Awards Program for Excellence in College and University Teaching in the Food and Agricultural Sciences.

Strengthening Rural Cooperatives and Communities Act

Strengthening Rural Cooperatives and Communities Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2029 and modifies the Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) Program. This Department of Agriculture (USDA) program provides grants to nonprofit institutions to help individuals and businesses start, expand, or improve rural cooperatives and other mutually-owned businesses through Rural Cooperative Development Centers. USDA must give preference to grants that commit to providing technical assistance and other services to socially vulnerable, underserved, or distressed communities. Under current law, USDA must give preference to underserved and economically distressed areas in rural areas. In addition, USDA may give an additional preference to applications that commit to providing a 25% matching contribution for the center with private funds and in-kind contributions. Specifically, USDA may award the maximum points in application scoring criteria to applicants that satisfy this requirement. Under the bill, cooperative development includes activities (e.g., outreach, education, training, and technical assistance) to support the startup, expansion, or ongoing sustainability of new and existing cooperatives. Current law does not define cooperative development. The bill directs the RCDG interagency working group to submit an annual report to Congress on its activities. Finally, the program currently includes cooperative research program requirements to collect data on the effects of all types of cooperatives on the national economy. Under the bill, USDA must analyze the data resulting from the research and include the data and analysis in the annual report to Congress.

Lowering Egg Prices Act of 2025

Lowering Egg Prices Act of 2025 This bill permits unrefrigerated surplus eggs originally intended for hatching to be repurposed for use in pasteurized liquid egg products intended for consumption. Under current regulations, most eggs intended for consumption must be refrigerated within 36 hours of being laid. The bill would exempt from this requirement surplus broiler hatching eggs (eggs originally intended to be hatched and raised for meat) that are repurposed for sale to an egg breaker (a facility that sells liquid egg to food manufacturers). (Broiler hatching eggs are generally held at a warmer temperature than other eggs in order to facilitate incubation. Because these eggs are not refrigerated, current regulations prohibit the sale of any surplus broiler hatching eggs to egg breakers for use in liquid egg products. Liquid egg products distributed for consumption are separately required under current law to be pasteurized, or treated to destroy bacteria.) The bill also requires the Food and Drug Administration to revise the refrigeration requirement to permit surplus broiler hatching eggs held at temperatures suitable for hatching chicks to be sold to egg breakers for processing as liquid egg products.