Peter Welch

To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to permit States to record in writing that applicants for supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits have signed an application through a recorded verbal assent over the telephone.

To require the Secretary of Agriculture to cancel existing school meal debt.

To amend the National and Community Service Act of 1990 to establish a Civilian Climate Corps to help communities respond to climate change and transition to a clean economy, and for other purposes.

Designating September 2023 as National Voting Rights Month.

To permit employees to request changes to their work schedules without fear of retaliation and to ensure that employers consider these requests, and to require employers to provide more predictable and stable schedules for employees in certain occupations with evidence of unpredictable and unstable scheduling practices that negatively affect employees, and for other purposes.

To extend protections to part-time workers in the areas of family and medical leave and to ensure equitable treatment in the workplace.

To prohibit the non-consensual release of claims by States, municipalities, federally recognized Tribes, or the United States against non-debtors, and for other purposes.

To increase child care options for working families and support child care providers.

To support carbon dioxide removal research and development, and for other purposes.

To amend the Food Security Act of 1985 to clarify land eligible for enrollment in the conservation reserve program.

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the United States Army Dustoff crews of the Vietnam War, collectively, in recognition of their extraordinary heroism and life-saving actions in Vietnam.

To prevent a person who has been convicted of a misdemeanor hate crime, or received an enhanced sentence for a misdemeanor because of hate or bias in its commission, from obtaining a firearm.

Designating the week beginning September 10, 2023, as National Direct Support Professionals Recognition Week.

To repeal the authority under the National Labor Relations Act for States to enact laws prohibiting agreements requiring membership in a labor organization as a condition of employment, and for other purposes.

To amend the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to reauthorize the position of Farmworker Coordinator.

To direct restoration and protection efforts of the 5-State Connecticut River Watershed region, and for other purposes.

Recognizing August 23, 2023, as National Poll Worker Recruitment Day.

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to eliminate interest on student loans, establish the Education Affordability Trust Fund, increase annual and aggregate loan limits, and for other purposes.

To amend the Research Facilities Act and the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 to address deferred maintenance at agricultural research facilities, and for other purposes.

To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to build safer, thriving communities, and save lives, by investing in effective community-based violence reduction initiatives, and for other purposes.