PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jan 3, 2025
This bill prohibits any entity that receives specified COVID-19 relief funds from mandating that its employees receive COVID-19 vaccines. An entity that violates this prohibition must return the funding it received.
People & committees
Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5] · R–AZ
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Jun 24, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
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Analyze H.R.119 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.119 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.119 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-01-03 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
H.R. 119 would prohibit entities receiving federal money from specified COVID relief packages from requiring any employee to get a COVID-19 vaccine. An entity violating that restriction would have to return any funds it received from the covered relief package to the federal government. These are proposed requirements, not evidence of enacted law.
(a) Funding restriction Any entity that receives Federal funds from a COVID relief package may not mandate that any employee of such entity receives a COVID–19 vaccine.
(b) Return of funds Any entity that is in violation of subsection (a) shall return any funds received from the COVID relief package to the Federal Government.
2025-01-03: Introduced in House
The proposal defines covered COVID relief packages as six laws: the CARES Act; the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020; the Families First Coronavirus Response Act; the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act; the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021; and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
(c) COVID relief package defined In this section, the term COVID relief package means any of the following: (1) CARES Act (Public Law 116–136). (2) Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116–123). (3) Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Public Law 116–127). (4) Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (Public Law 116–139). (5) Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116–260). (6) American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2).
Returning relief funds would be mandatory for an entity that violates the employee vaccination restriction. The repayment language covers “any funds received from the COVID relief package”, without limiting repayment to money spent on vaccination requirements.
(b) Return of funds Any entity that is in violation of subsection (a) shall return any funds received from the COVID relief package to the Federal Government.
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated June 24, 2025, records introduction in the House on January 3, 2025, and referral that day to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee on Energy and Commerce for provisions within their respective jurisdictions.
Source snapshot updated 2025-06-24T08:05:56Z.
2025-01-03: Introduced in House
2025-01-03: Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-01-03. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy change attached to appropriations was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; accompanying materials could require separate review.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No materially narrow carve-out, special exemption, or preferential treatment was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. Broad coverage of the policy’s intended beneficiaries does not alone constitute a targeted benefit. This conclusion does not extend to other versions or accompanying materials.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Jun 24, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI