Business meeting to consider S.2292, to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to revise and extend the user fee program for over-the-counter monograph drugs, S.1440, to amend title II of the Public Health Service Act to include as an additional right or privilege of commissioned officers of the Public Health Service (and their beneficiaries) certain leave provided under title 10, United States Code to commissioned officers of the Army (or their beneficiaries), S.2398, to reauthorize the Kay Hagan Tick Act, S.2301, to reauthorize certain programs regarding rural health care, S.1728, to amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to expand the membership of the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans to include representatives of employee ownership organizations, and S.2403, to amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to provide a clear definition of adequate consideration for certain closely held stock.

Committee on Education

2025-07-30

Source: Congress.gov

Summary

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions convened to deliberate on a series of bipartisan bills aimed at enhancing Americans' access to quality healthcare and retirement benefits. The committee emphasized a collaborative approach to deliver tangible results for families across the nation. [ 00:06:10 ]

Themes

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)

Several bills were considered to strengthen Employee Stock Ownership Plans, fostering worker empowerment and wealth building. [ 00:08:50 ]

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 The "Retire Through Ownership Act" (S2403) seeks to clarify federal law, shielding ESOPs from unwarranted lawsuits when employees purchase company shares. The "Employee Ownership Representation Act" (S1728) aims to expand ESOP representation on the ERISA Advisory Council and establish an Employee Ownership Council and advocate within the Department of Labor. Senators underscored the importance of involving workers in decision-making processes to counteract income inequality. Amendments to these bills were adopted to ensure robust Department of Labor guidance on ESOP valuation and worker protections.

Over-the-Counter (OTC) Drug Regulation

The "Over-the-Counter Monograph Drug User Fee Amendments" (S2292) were presented for reauthorization to streamline the FDA's review process for OTC drugs. [ 00:20:40 ]

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 This initiative seeks to accelerate the availability of safe OTC medications, enhance FDA efficiency, and reduce taxpayer costs. [ 00:20:51 ]

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 A key component, the "SmartOTC Act," guides the FDA in approving prescription drugs for over-the-counter use, promising improved patient access and more options.

Uniformed Services Leave Parity

The "Uniform Services Leave Parity Act" (S1440) proposes to grant Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officers leave benefits equivalent to those of other uniformed services. [ 00:24:42-00:24:53 ]

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 This measure aims to rectify disparities in benefits, including parental leave, and ensure fairness in recruiting healthcare professionals.

Rural Healthcare Access

The "Improving Care in Rural America Reauthorization Act" (S2301) was introduced to address healthcare disparities in rural communities. [ 00:26:19 ]

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 The bill reauthorizes three grant programs supporting preventive screenings, telehealth, and chronic disease management. It emphasizes local community involvement and is expected to significantly improve rural health outcomes. [ 00:26:28 ]

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[ 00:26:57 ]

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Tick-borne and Vector-borne Diseases

The "Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act" (S2398) aims to bolster programs for the prevention and response to rapidly escalating tick-borne and other vector-borne diseases. Named after former Senator Kay Hagan, who succumbed to the Powassan virus, the bill facilitates inter-agency coordination and reauthorizes funding for CDC centers of excellence and state/local health departments. The alarming increase in Lyme disease cases highlights the urgency of this legislation.

Tone of the Meeting

The meeting was characterized by a highly cooperative and bipartisan atmosphere, with multiple speakers commending the collaborative efforts of their colleagues. [ 00:06:10 ] [ 00:20:42 ]

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 All amendments and bills introduced received unanimous approval, signifying a strong consensus and shared commitment to advancing these legislative priorities. [ 00:12:29 ]

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[ 00:16:54 ]

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[ 00:19:08 ]

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 The discussions were constructive and focused on problem-solving, reflecting a unified approach to public health and economic welfare.

Participants

Transcript

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions will please come to order.  We don't have a quorum yet, but we'll start with our opening statements.  That's okay?
Yeah.
Sounds great.  Okay, great.
Today, the committee is considering multiple bipartisan pro-worker, pro-family, and pro-patient bills strengthening Americans' access to quality health care and retirement benefits.  I really appreciate colleagues working on these bills.  When the committee sets politics aside and works together, we can deliver real results for American families.  I hope this to be the first of many markups that will move down Dyess member priorities from both sides.   We're voting on bills to strengthen employee stock ownership plans, ESOPs, empowering workers to have a stake in their company and build wealth for themselves and their families.
Senators Marshall and Keynes' Retire Through Ownership Act clarifies federal law ensuring ESOPs can sell shares of their company to employees without the fear of frivolous lawsuits.
My Employee Ownership Representation Act adds two new ESOP board members to the ERISA Advisory Council.
Senator Hassan is offering an amendment to this bill, which I look forward to supporting.
It improves the bill, and I appreciate her thoughtful engagement.  I also want to note the committee is not voting on the Employee Ownership Fairness Act   to authorize ESOPs to contribute into 401 plans without exceeding contribution limits, every witness last week underscored how this strengthens employee ownership and puts more money in workers' pockets.  Several committee members from both sides have expressed strong support for the goals of the legislation.   But the bill is not on today's agenda.  We're working to refine the policy.  Frankly, the score was a little bit more than we thought to get it in a good place so it can appear on a markup in the future.  Additionally, the committee is reauthorizing the over-the-counter monograph drug user fee amendments, a MUFA, to improve the Food and Drug Administration's review of OTC drugs   so they can be more quickly available while still ensuring safety.  The committee held a hearing last month on enhancing EMUFA, and I appreciate Senators Banks and Kane for leading this effort and the work of Senators Marshall, Husted, and Hassan to include additional policy writers to speed up the review of sunscreen and allow more drugs to be available OTC.   Senators Murkowski and Duckworth's Uniform Services Leave Parity Act fixes leave benefits for Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officers.  It now gives them the same leave available to other members of the uniformed services.  Senators Scott and Smith's Improving Care in Rural America Reauthorization Act helps address the healthcare needs of rural communities by reauthorizing three grant programs supporting access to preventive screenings, telehealth services,   and chronic disease management important pro-patient priorities for this committee.  Senators Collins and Smith's Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act strengthens programs to prepare for and respond to tick-borne and other vector-borne diseases which are rapidly spreading in every state.
The legislation is named in honor of former Senator Kay Hagan of North Carolina who passed away from a rare tick-borne disease in 2019.
Specifically, the bill improves coordination among federal agencies, health departments, and scientists, and builds regional capabilities to respond to vector-borne disease outbreaks.
I thank Senator Collins for her steadfast leadership in this issue critical to Maine, but to us all.
Thank you all for your good work.  I look forward to advancing these bills as part of our pro-worker, pro-family, pro-patient agenda.
And with that, I recognize Senator Sanders.  Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.  I will be...   supporting all of the pieces of legislation that we have before us.  I am pleased that you have focused attention on the need to improve and expand ESOPs and worker ownership.  We live in a moment in American history where we have more income and wealth inequality than we've ever had, where we have more concentration of ownership than we've ever had,   And I think we live in a moment where millions of workers feel kind of powerless as to what their economic future can be.  Tomorrow, some company can announce they're moving to China or shutting down, and workers have nothing to say about that.  I think an antidote to that, in fact, is what we have been talking about.  And I enjoyed very much the hearing that we had last week.  I think all of the witnesses were very good.  How do you empower workers?   How do you create a climate where workers themselves are involved in the decision-making process so that they're not just cogs in a machine?  That is our goal.  And I think the legislation that we're looking at today is a modest, modest step forward.   I have proposed a major piece of legislation which would enable workers and small business owners all over the country to get more information as to how they can move forward to ESOPs or worker ownerships.

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