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Rep. Duncan Introduces Ten Pieces of Legislation to Begin 118th Congress

January 10, 2023

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, Congressman Jeff Duncan introduced the following ten pieces of legislation to begin the 118th Congress and begin his work for the American people. This legislative portfolio protects American energy production, upholds Second Amendment rights, combats inflation, protects children from exploitation, and defends our national security.

Preventing the release of GITMO prisoners into the U.S. (118th: H.R. 143; 117th: H.R. 1048; 114th: H. Res. 617)

  • Quote: “It’s commonsense to keep the dangerous enemy combatants captured by our military and housed at Guantanamo Bay away from American citizens and out of our judicial system,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “This legislation prevents the Biden Administration from endangering Americans’ lives and our national security by transferring known terrorists to American soil, including to the Naval Consolidated Brig at Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina. I’ve led on this issue since 2015 and will not stop fighting until Guantanamo Bay prisoners are barred from being released in the U.S.”

  • Background: This legislation ensures that no funding amounts authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available for the Department of Defense for any fiscal year may be used to transfer, release, or assist in the transfer or release of individuals detained at Guantanamo Bay to or within the United States, its territories, or possessions, as Joe Biden has signaled his intent to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay.

Adjusting Davis-Bacon for Inflation (118th: H.R. 144; 115th: H.R. 2654; 114th: H.R. 3472; 113th: H.R. 1637; 112th: H.R. 3135): Makes a one-time inflation adjustment to the enforcement floor for the Davis-Bacon Act from a $2000 contract or subcontract to a $1M contract or subcontract.

  • Quote: “As Americans struggle under the weight of record-high inflation as a result of reckless government spending, adjusting Davis-Bacon for inflation will help combat the impact of this on Americans by increasing the contract threshold to $1 million, which will require the locally prevailing wage rate to be paid to laborers and mechanics in federal-financed projects,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “Adjusting the 1934 statute for inflation will modernize this standard to help hardworking federal contractors keep pace with high costs due to inflation.”

  • Background: The Davis-Bacon act of 1934 required union-level wage agreements for all federal contracts above a certain floor (floor at $2000 per subcontract). This legislation will adjust the 1934 statute for inflation, increasing the floor on a one-time basis to $1 million to keep pace with inflation.

RUSH WAS RIGHT Act (118th: H.R. 145; 117th: H.R. 1409): Prohibits the FCC from reimposing the so-called “Fairness Doctrine.”

  • Quote: “The Reassuring that the United States Has Wide And Scrupulous Rhetorical Insight to Garnish Honest Thought Act will ensure the FCC’s so-called ‘Fairness Doctrine’ will not arbitrarily stifle broadcast radio and television based solely on ideological affiliation or controversy,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan.

  • Background:The FCC instituted the fairness doctrine in 1949, requiring broadcast permit holders to provide both sides of any controversial issue. Wisely, the Reagan administration’s FCC removed the fairness doctrine in 1987. Democrats have threatened to reinstate the fairness doctrine ever since, and this was most famously opposed by conservative talk radio legend Rush Limbaugh. Cancel culture leftists have again been threatening to reinstate it to silence conservative viewpoints on American talk radio.

Old Glory Only Act (118th: H.R. 146; 117th: H.R. 85; 116th: H.R. 144; 115th: H.R. 6450): Prohibits any flag other than the American flag from being flown over American embassies or consulates.

  • Quote: “Our beautiful flag, Old Glory, should be the only flag flying and representing our country over our diplomatic and consular posts worldwide,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “The American flag is a beacon of liberty, and no other flag or symbol better portrays our shared values than the Stars and Stripes. It is important to ensure that Old Glory only is flown at American embassies to represent our ideals abroad.”

  • Background: This legislation was originally introduced in response to a State Department official putting a rainbow flag up over a South American embassy in 2018. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has since authorized all U.S. embassies and consulates overseas to fly the BLM flag on their official flagpole.

Competition in Professional Baseball Act (118th: H.R. 147; 117th: H.R. 2511; S. 1111 – Lee): Eliminates the baseball antitrust exemption.

  • Quote: “Major League Baseball enjoys constitutionally-questionable antitrust protections and has used this for woke, political purposes in the past, especially in punishing the state of Georgia for its voter integrity laws by moving the MLB All-Star Game,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “It is time we strike this unconstitutional exemption from the MLB.”

  • Background: Congressman Duncan first filed this legislation in 2021 in response to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s decision to remove All-Star Game in Georgia over partisan concerns regarding Georgia’s election security reform legislation.

JUSTICE Act (118th: H.R. 148;117th: H.R. 87; 116th: H.R. 4150, S. 2401- Kennedy): Prohibits the importation or transport of child-like sex dolls that predator networks use as training tools on abuse victims.

  • Quote: “It is our responsibility to keep children safe from abuse and exploitation, and this legislation with help protect the most vulnerable from such threats,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “I introduced the JUSTICE Act to combat the sexualization of children and ensure the Department of Justice bans the importation of child sex abuse dolls and robots, which often leads to the abuse of children, to keep these obscenities out of the hands of groomers.”

  • Background: The JUSTICE Act adds "child-like sex dolls" to the already legally defined list of banned obscenities that cannot be imported into the United States or transported across state lines. Most of these items are manufactured in China and shipped around the world, and these items are already illegal in Great Britain and Australia. Similar legislation passed the House of Representatives unanimously in the 115th Congress.

Protecting Our Democracy by Preventing Foreign Citizens From Voting Act (118th: H.R. 149; 117th: H.R. 6299; S. 3403 – Rubio; 116th: H.R. 151; 115th: H.R. 6482): Prohibits federal funds from being made available to state or local governments that allow non-citizens to vote in federal, state, or local elections.

  • Quote: “Allowing non-citizen voting in the United States dilutes the value of American citizenship and threatens our national sovereignty,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “Voting is the hallmark of our democracy, and non-citizen voting undermines our election integrity. Voting is a right that should be limited solely to American citizens, and this legislation will help safeguard our election from foreign interference.”

  • Background: Noncitizen voting has become a trend nationwide. Cities like San Francisco, Washington, D.C., New York City, some Maryland jurisdictions near Washington, D.C., Chicago, and two cities in Vermont, for example, have passed bills to allow noncitizen voting in certain elections.

Protecting American Energy Production Act (118th: H.R. 150; 117th: H.R. 751; 116th: H.R. 7400): Prohibits the President from unilaterally imposing a fracking ban.

  • Quote: “The key to solving the energy crisis is to unleash domestic energy production,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “The President should not have the power to unilaterally shut down fracking and domestic energy production. The President’s war on American energy has driven us into an energy crisis and made us dependent on our adversaries. This legislation will help safeguard American energy and lead us toward energy independence and dominance.”

  • Background: This legislation was originally filed in response to the Biden Administration repeatedly pledging to end drilling in the United States and the steps the Administration has taken to end oil and gas production and inhibit domestic energy production.

NFA SBS Act (118th: H.R. 151; 117th: H.R. 4312): Removes short-barreled shotguns from the NFA, requires the DOJ to destroy records relating to the registration of short-barreled shotguns, and clarifies language excluding shotguns from being classified as a destructive device.

  • Quote: “The No Frivolous Applications for Short-Barreled Shotguns Act will help strike outdated regulations that infringe on the ability to bear arms and strip power from the gun-grabbing ATF,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan.

  • Background:Individuals who wish to obtain a shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches must go through a lengthy application process, register with the ATF, and pay a $200 tax stamp under the current NFA. This barrel length restriction is a relic of prohibition-era gang hysteria that led to a failed attempt to regulate handguns and other concealable weapons.

Hearing Protection Act (118th: H.R. 152; 117th: H.R. 95; S. 2050 – Crapo; 116th: H.R. 155; 115th: H.R. 367): Removes suppressors from the NFA definition of a firearm, and requires the Department of Justice to destroy documents related to the registration, transfer, or making of a suppressor.

  • Quote: “As a lifelong outdoorsman and an avid hunter, I experience hearing loss due to firearm noise from years of doing what I love, and there is no doubt that easier access to firearms suppressors could have prevented this damage,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “The Hearing Protection Act would prevent sportsmen from suffering hearing loss from firearm noise by removing unnecessary burdens in the process to obtain a firearms suppressor.”

  • Background: The use of hearing suppressors is common in places like Europe with stricter gun laws for hearing protection and noise control in populated areas. The National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have all recommended suppressors as a tool to prevent hearing damage. This legislation simplifies the purchasing of suppressors, so American gunowners can protect their hearing while operating a firearm. Despite common misconceptions, suppressors do not make firearms “silent,” but rather reduce their decibel level to a similar level as a jackhammer.

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