Congressional Digest — December 2025, Part 1: 21 Bills Signed Into Law
These are the ones that finished the journey: 21 bills signed into law in December 2025. Plain-language summaries below; the full breakdown — what each law does and who it affects — is linked on every entry.
Signed into law
SJRES 80 — A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Integrated Activity Plan Record of Decision". This joint resolution nullifies a 2022 Bureau of Land Management rule that closed approximately 48% of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska—a roughly 23-million-acre area on the North Slope—to oil and gas leasing.
HJRES 104 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "Miles City Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan Amendment". This joint resolution nullifies a Bureau of Land Management rule that had made 1,745,040 acres in eastern Montana unavailable for coal leasing. By overturning the BLM's Miles City Field Office Resource Management Plan Amendment, the resolution reopens that land to potential coal leasing consideration.
HJRES 105 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "North Dakota Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan". This joint resolution nullifies a Bureau of Land Management rule issued on January 8, 2025, that updated the management plan for BLM-administered lands in North Dakota. The overturned rule had modified a 1988 plan by restricting oil and gas development in certain low-potential areas and limiting new coal leasing.
HJRES 106 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "Central Yukon Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan". This joint resolution, now public law, nullifies a Bureau of Land Management rule issued on November 12, 2024, that established a Resource Management Plan for Alaska's Central Yukon planning area.
HJRES 130 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to Buffalo Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan Amendment. This joint resolution cancels a 2024 Bureau of Land Management rule that had made all federal coal in Wyoming's Buffalo Field Office unavailable for future leasing. By nullifying that rule, it restores the 2015 resource management plan, which did allow coal to be leased in that area.
HJRES 131 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program Record of Decision. This joint resolution cancels a 2024 Bureau of Land Management rule that restricted oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge's Coastal Plain. By nullifying that rule, the resolution effectively restores the 2020 policy that made all approximately 1.
HJRES 133 — Requesting the Secretary of the Interior to authorize unique and one-time arrangements for displays on the National Mall and the Washington Monument during the period beginning on December 31, 2025, and ending on January 5, 2026. This joint resolution requests the Department of the Interior to allow special, one-time displays of materials related to the U.S.
HR 165 — Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act. This law directs the Department of the Interior to place approximately 40 acres in Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. The land must be preserved as a memorial and sacred site, following a 2022 covenant between the two tribes.
Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act
HR 187 — MAPWaters Act of 2025. The MAPWaters Act of 2025 requires the U.S. Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to standardize and publicly publish geospatial data about recreational access to federal waterways and federal fishing restrictions.
S 216 — Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act. This bill reauthorizes and updates the Marine Debris Program and the Marine Debris Foundation, which work to prevent and address ocean trash and its effects on the environment, economy, and navigation.
Save Our Seas 2.0 Amendments Act
S 284 — Congressional Award Program Reauthorization Act. This act reauthorizes the Congressional Award Board through FY2028, allowing it to continue administering the Congressional Award Program, which gives medals to young people ages 14 to 23 for achievement in public service, personal development, and physical fitness.
Congressional Award Program Reauthorization Act
S 356 — Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025. This law reauthorizes and modifies the Secure Rural Schools program, which provides federal payments to states and counties containing federal land managed by the Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management.
Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025
HR 410 — Alaska Native Vietnam Era Veterans Land Allotment Extension Act of 2025. This law extends by five years the deadline for eligible Alaska Native Vietnam-era veterans or their heirs to apply for a federal land allotment in Alaska. The application window, previously set to close on December 29, 2025, is now extended to December 29, 2030.
Alaska Native Vietnam Era Veterans Land Allotment Extension Act of 2025
S 616 — Foundation of the Federal Bar Association Charter Amendments Act of 2025. This act updates the federal charter for the Foundation of the Federal Bar Association, shifting many governance rules—such as office location, membership terms, and officer elections—from the charter itself into the organization's bylaws.
Foundation of the Federal Bar Association Charter Amendments Act of 2025
HR 695 — Medal of Honor Act. This act increases the monthly special pension for living Medal of Honor recipients and sets rules about inflation adjustments to that pension.
S 1071 — National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 sets defense policy and spending authorities for the Department of Defense, Department of Energy national security programs, State Department, Coast Guard, and Intelligence Community.
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
HR 1491 — Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act. This act requires the IRS to count disaster-related deadline postponements as formal extensions when calculating which tax payments are eligible for a refund. It also clarifies that the IRS's deadline for sending certain payment notices includes any disaster-related postponement of the tax due date.
Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act
HR 1512 — Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act. This bill changes a one-time State Department review of U.S.-Taiwan relationship guidance into a recurring requirement, mandating a report to Congress every two years. The reports must describe how the guidance accounts for Taiwan's democratic governance and identify opportunities to ease self-imposed U.S.
Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act
HR 1912 — Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act of 2025. This law changes how the Department of Veterans Affairs handles cases where a fiduciary misuses a veteran's benefits, requiring the VA to reissue those benefits without delay and setting rules for how negligence determinations are made.
Veteran Fraud Reimbursement Act of 2025
HR 2483 — SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2025. This law reauthorizes and updates a range of federal HHS programs addressing substance use disorders, drug overdoses, and mental health for fiscal years 2026 through 2030.
SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2025
S 2878 — Great Lakes Fishery Research Reauthorization Act. This law reauthorizes the U.S. Geological Survey's fishery research and monitoring program in the Great Lakes Basin through fiscal year 2030.
Great Lakes Fishery Research Reauthorization Act
That is the complete record for December 2025. Every linked page has the full neutral breakdown — stated purpose, who is affected, the arguments on both sides, and the recorded votes. Follow the bills you care about and NewsClear will track what happens next.
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