[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5613 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5613
To prohibit the Federal Government from mandating vaccination against
COVID-19 for interstate travel.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 19, 2021
Mr. Cawthorn (for himself, Mr. Duncan, Mr. Biggs, Ms. Tenney, Mr.
Steube, Mrs. Boebert, and Mr. Perry) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in
addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 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 BILL
To prohibit the Federal Government from mandating vaccination against
COVID-19 for interstate travel.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Let Me Travel America Act''.
SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY OF SURGEON GENERAL.
Section 361 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 264) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to provide the
Surgeon General, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, or any
Federal agency with the authority to mandate vaccination against
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a prerequisite for interstate
travel, transportation, or movement.''.
SEC. 3. INTERSTATE COMMON CARRIERS.
(a) In General.--Chapter 805 of title 49, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 80505. COVID-19 vaccination status
``(a) In General.--An entity described in subsection (b) may not
deny service to any individual solely based on the vaccination status
of the individual with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-
19).
``(b) Entity Described.--An entity referred to in subsection (a) is
a common carrier or any other entity, including a rail carrier (as
defined in section 10102, including Amtrak), a motor carrier (as
defined in section 13102), a water carrier (as defined in that
section), and an air carrier (as defined in section 40102), that--
``(1) provides interstate transportation of passengers; and
``(2) is subject to the jurisdiction of the Department of
Transportation or the Surface Transportation Board under this
title.
``(c) Savings Provision.--Nothing in this section applies to the
regulation of intrastate travel, transportation, or movement, including
the intrastate transportation of passengers.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 805 of title 49,
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to
section 80504 the following:
``80505. COVID-19 vaccination status.''.
SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, shall be
construed to permit or otherwise authorize Congress or an executive
agency to enact or otherwise impose a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
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