Congressional Digest — December 2025, Part 3: 19 Bills Through the Senate
Senate edition of the December record: 19 bills that passed the Senate in December 2025. Each gets a plain-language line below, with the complete neutral analysis linked.
Passed the Senate
S 355 — FDA Modernization Act 3.0. This bill directs the FDA to publish a new rule within one year that replaces requirements for animal testing with broader 'nonclinical' testing options when companies apply to investigate new drugs.
S 390 — BADGES for Native Communities Act. The BADGES for Native Communities Act revises federal policies on information sharing, reporting, and investigating cases of missing, unidentified, or murdered Native Americans.
BADGES for Native Communities Act
S 546 — Technical Correction to the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation Water Rights Settlement Act of 2025. This bill makes a technical correction to a 2025 water rights settlement law for the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation. It authorizes the deposit of $5,124,902.12 in specified interest payments into the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes Water Rights Development Fund, which was originally established in 2009.
S 550 — A bill to provide for the equitable settlement of certain Indian land disputes regarding land in Illinois, and for other purposes. This bill grants the U.S. Court of Federal Claims jurisdiction to hear a land claim by the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma related to the Treaty of Grouseland, covering disputed land in Illinois.
S 594 — HELP Response and Recovery Act. This bill extends the maximum length of noncompetitive DHS disaster response and recovery contracts from 150 days to one year by removing the current time limit and applying standard procurement rules for urgent needs.
HELP Response and Recovery Act
S 607 — Improving Veteran Access to Care Act. This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to create an integrated project team focused on improving how VA health care appointments are scheduled.
Improving Veteran Access to Care Act
S 610 — Ensuring VetSuccess On Campus Act of 2025. This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to place at least one VetSuccess on Campus (VSOC) counselor in every state. The VSOC program helps veterans, servicemembers, and eligible dependents transition from military service to college life.
Ensuring VetSuccess On Campus Act of 2025
S 612 — A bill to amend the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act to authorize grants to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations, and for other purposes. This bill amends existing law to authorize grants to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations to support recreational travel and tourism activities.
S 620 — Veterinary Services to Improve Public Health in Rural Communities Act. This bill expands public health veterinary services in tribal and rural communities to prevent and control zoonotic diseases—illnesses that spread between animals and humans.
Veterinary Services to Improve Public Health in Rural Communities Act
S 622 — Leech Lake Reservation Restoration Amendments Act of 2025. This bill requires the U.S. Department of Agriculture to transfer certain federal land in the Chippewa National Forest in Cass County, Minnesota, to the Department of the Interior for the benefit of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
Leech Lake Reservation Restoration Amendments Act of 2025
S 640 — Technical Corrections to the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, and Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act. This bill makes technical corrections to three existing water rights settlement laws by authorizing deposits of unpaid interest into three separate funds originally established in 2009 and 2010, which had not allowed interest to accrue. The deposits total approximately $18.
S 642 — Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Land Claim Settlement Act of 2025. This bill directs the Department of the Interior to transfer $33,900,000 to the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) in Baraga County, Michigan, to settle the tribe's land claims and clear title to those lands. The KBIC may use the funds for any lawful purpose except to purchase land for gaming.
Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Land Claim Settlement Act of 2025
S 719 — Tribal Forest Protection Act Amendments Act of 2025. This bill reauthorizes the Tribal Forest Protection Act through FY2031 and expands its scope, allowing Indian tribes and Alaska Native corporations to enter into land management contracts with federal agencies to protect forests and rangelands from wildfire and disease.
Tribal Forest Protection Act Amendments Act of 2025
S 727 — U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Retirement Technical Corrections Act. This bill adjusts retirement benefit calculations for certain U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers who received a tentative job offer before July 6, 2008, but started work on or after that date, ensuring they qualify for a proportional annuity.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Retirement Technical Corrections Act
S 748 — A bill to reaffirm the applicability of the Indian Reorganization Act to the Lytton Rancheria of California, and for other purposes. This bill reaffirms that the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) applies to the Lytton Rancheria of California, treating the tribe as having been under federal jurisdiction as of June 18, 1934.
S 787 — VetPAC Act of 2025. This bill creates the Veterans Health Administration Policy Advisory Commission, a new body tasked with reviewing operations at the Veterans Health Administration and submitting reports with recommendations to Congress.
S 861 — Disaster Assistance Simplification Act. This bill directs FEMA to create a single, unified application system for disaster survivors seeking assistance from multiple disaster aid agencies.
Disaster Assistance Simplification Act
S 1437 — ASCEND Act. The ASCEND Act gives NASA formal legal authority for its existing Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition (CSDA) program, through which NASA purchases Earth observation data and imagery from commercial satellites to support science research.
S 1591 — ARCA Act of 2025. The ARCA Act of 2025 would establish new oversight and review requirements for major federal acquisition programs whose total lifecycle costs exceed $1,000,000,000 or whose annual costs exceed $200,000,000, requiring mission-driven requirements to be set in coordination with designated agency officials.
Tap any bill for the complete neutral analysis and recorded votes. This digest is part of an ongoing series covering every bill that moves past committee.
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