Top Bills – 119th Congress

These bills in the current session of Congress may well impact Americans living abroad

To aid its advocacy, AARO monitors legislation that is proposed in the House of Representatives and the Senate for their impact on Americans abroad. As part of our mission is to keep our members informed, we apprise you of the relevant bills and explain why we think they are important for overseas Americans. Although some of the below bills may not fully address all our issues, we still advocate for their passage as their impact would nevertheless be beneficial.

Below are our Top Bills in the 119th Congress (Jan. 2025 – Jan. 2027).

Note: Links are provided to a government website which describes the bill and includes information such as co-sponsors and progress through Congress.

H.R. 8581 – “Commission on Americans Living Abroad Act of 2026”

Sponsored by Rep. Dina Titus (D. NV). This bill establishes a commission to study how Federal laws and policies affect United States citizens living in foreign countries.

Congresswoman Titus, Chair of the Americans Abroad Caucus, has reintroduced this bill, designed to ensure that the voice and interests of Americans abroad are made known and taken into account. Establishing this commission would be of enormous help in securing our rights and reducing burdens and discrimination.

Of particular note is the bill's provision that the Commission include members of organizations that represent United States citizens living in foreign countries, which could include AARO.
  Commission on Americans Living Abroad Act of 2026

S. 3931 – “A bill to improve services provided to taxpayers by the Internal Revenue Service” (also known as the Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act)

Sponsored by Senators Mike Crapo (R. ID) and Ron Wyden (D. OR). This bipartisan bill would provide common sense improvements to IRS procedures and administration, strengthen taxpayer rights and reduce their burdens by streamlining compliance.

This bill, which combines proposals emanating from the National Taxpayer Advocate and already introduced standalone legislative bills, contains a section (Title 2) which specifically aims to alleviate administrative burdens of overseas Americans, for which AARO has long advocated, notably combining and simplifying the FBAR and FATCA forms.
  Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act

H.R. 987 / S. 401 – “Fair Access to Banking Act”

Sponsored by Rep. Andy Barr (R. KY) and Sen. Kevin Cramer (R. ND).  These bills address the problem of “debanking,” i.e. exclusion from the U.S. financial system that many overseas Americans have experienced.

The bills’ main purpose is to ensure fair access to financial services, requiring that, among other things, financial institutions assess the risks posed by individual customers on a case-by-case basis, rather than category-based assessment.  These bills would benefit from some improvements, notably to emphasize more clearly that they apply to all law-abiding citizens, and not just businesses or organizations. But it is the first banking access bill AARO has seen that would make denial of service dependent on probable cause. 

  House Fair Access to Banking Act
  Senate Fair Access to Banking Act

H.R. 439 – “The Veterans Foreign Medical Coverage Equality & Modernization Act of 2025”

Sponsored by Representative Nick LaLota (R. NY). This bill would expand healthcare coverage for veterans living abroad who are rated as “Permanent & Total” disabled to include both service-connected and non-service-connected conditions. The Act also would modernize the VA Foreign Medical Program by introducing several needed technological and administrative updates.

  The Veterans Foreign Medical Coverage Equality & Modernization Act of 2025