Freedom Index 119-1

H.R. 21, the "Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act," would establish criminal penalties for healthcare practitioners who intentionally kill or harm an infant born alive following an abortion or attempted abortion.

The House passed H.R. 21 on January 23, 2025 by a vote of 217 to 204 (Roll Call 27). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the U.S. Constitution does not grant a right to abortion. Abortion is not healthcare, it is the ending of innocent human life, and the Declaration of Independence affirms the right to life as a fundamental, God-given, and inherent right.

Representative Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) made a motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 776, which would reauthorize the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 through fiscal 2030. This law enables the U.S. Department of the Interior to provide funding to states in order to eradicate nutria — large, invasive, semiaquatic rodents native to South America — and restore wetlands damaged by them.

The House agreed to Westerman’s motion on February 4, 2025 by a vote of 361 to 56 (Roll Call 29). We have assigned pluses to the nays because Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution does not authorize Congress to establish or fund conservation programs. The 10th Amendment reserves any such powers to “the States respectively, or to the people.”

H. J. Res. 35 would overturn the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2024 “Waste Emissions Charge” rule, which imposed annual fees on oil and gas facilities that emit methane above certain thresholds. The resolution blocks the EPA from imposing this rule — intended to curb greenhouse-gas emissions — on petroleum and natural-gas systems.

The House passed H. J. Res. 35 on February 26, 2025 by a vote of 220 to 206 (Roll Call 52). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because neither the EPA nor its methane emissions-fee rule are authorized under the Constitution. Moreover, the rule was driven by the false climate-change narrative that serves as a pretext for implementing the UN’s Agenda 2030, which undermines national sovereignty and promotes centralized, global control.

Representative Brian Babin (R-Texas) made a motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1534, the "Innovative Mitigation Partnerships for Asphalt and Concrete Technologies (IMPACT) Act," which would authorize the Department of Energy to fund research and development partnerships focused on reducing greenhouse-gas emissions from asphalt and concrete production.

The House agreed to Babin's motion on March 25, 2025 by a vote of 350 to 73 (Roll Call 74). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the Constitution does not authorize the federal government to fund or facilitate emissions research. Moreover, this bill feeds into the climate-change hoax and would align federal laws more closely with the UN's Agenda 2030. By funding "green" construction initiatives, it would distort the free market, misallocate taxpayer funds, and raise costs for businesses, homeowners, and other taxpayers.

Representative Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) made a motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 1402, the “Transparency In Charges for Key Events Ticketing (TICKET) Act,” which would require ticket sellers, including those in the secondary market, to clearly display the total ticket price, including all fees. The bill mandates an itemized breakdown of the base ticket price and additional fees before purchase completion, bans speculative ticketing, and requires refunds for canceled or significantly postponed events.

The House agreed to Bilirakis’ motion on April 29, 2025 by a vote of 409 to 15 (Roll Call 107). We have assigned pluses to the nays because the Constitution does not authorize the federal government to regulate private industries such as ticketing. This legislation imposes unnecessary federal mandates, duplicating existing, market-driven industry practices. Such regulations would likely increase operational costs for ticket sellers, leading to higher ticket prices for consumers and placing undue burdens on smaller vendors.

H.R. 4, the “Rescissions Act of 2025,” would rescind $9.4 billion in funding previously appropriated by Congress for fiscal 2025, including $8.3 billion in foreign aid and $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The foreign-aid rescissions include $800 million for migration and refugee assistance, $361 million for international peacekeeping operations, and $169 million for international organizations such as the United Nations and World Health Organization.

The House passed H.R. 4 on June 12, 2025 by a vote of 214 to 212 (Roll Call 168). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution authorizes Congress to neither establish or fund public media nor send financial aid to foreign countries. Although $9.4 billion is a small number compared to the total amount of federal expenditures, it is a good first step toward reining in unconstitutional, reckless spending.

H.R. 2056, the “District of Columbia Federal Immigration Compliance Act of 2025,” would prohibit the District of Columbia from limiting its cooperation with federal immigration enforcement, effectively repealing the “Sanctuary Values Amendment Act of 2020.”

The House passed H.R. 2056 on June 12, 2025 by a vote of 224 to 194 (Roll Call 171). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because illegal aliens are, by definition, criminals who ought to be deported from the United States. They should not be permitted sanctuary in our nation’s capital or anywhere else in the country. Persons who enter the United States unlawfully are “deportable” under existing federal law, as Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution grants Congress the power to not only “establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization,” but provide for the execution of the “Laws of this Union” and protection against “Invasion.” Moreover, Clause 17 of Article I, Section 8 gives Congress the ability to “exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever” involving Washington, D.C. Rather than pursue policies that undermine the rule of law and erode the privileges of citizenship, federal, state, and local authorities should end the existential crisis of mass migration.