The Senate appears poised this week to act first on a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government running beyond the end of this month, when the current fiscal year ends, but the path forward in the House of Representatives is still not resolved. While the strategy to keep the government running and allow members to return home to campaign is hammered out behind the scenes, other legislative priorities will dominate floor activity in both chambers.
Legislative business will resume in the Senate on Monday, when members are expected to vote on a motion to invoke cloture on S. 2848, the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). The cloture motion is expected to succeed, because the legislation has significant bipartisan support. Adoption of the motion will set up a vote on final passage later in the week. The chamber is expected to consider germane amendments to the bill throughout the week.
Meanwhile, Senate leaders are working to draft a CR that will keep the government funded into Fiscal Year (FY) 2017, which begins on October 1. Press reports indicate Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Harry Reid have engaged in discussions on the details of a short-term CR that would run through December 9 and would include supplemental funding to combat the Zika virus outbreak in the United States. The December deadline would allow lawmakers to adjourn and hit the campaign trail, while also giving congressional leaders and Administration officials time to negotiate a larger spending deal for the remainder of FY 2017 following the election.
If the specifics can be hammered out quickly, the leaders may attempt to pass the CR this week after a final vote on WRDA and adjourn early for the fall recess that was scheduled for the Senate to begin on October 7. Those specifics will include a negotiation over funding levels and budget caps and anomalies, as well as the supplemental provision for Zika virus research and eradication efforts. As we have discussed on several occasions, the Zika funding has been held up throughout the summer over disagreements involving offsets for the spending and funding for Planned Parenthood-affiliated health clinics. Senate Democrats successfully blocked consideration of the House-passed FY 2017 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations conference report, which serves as a vehicle for the Zika response measure. In order to gain Democratic support for a CR, Senate Republicans may be willing to drop the controversial provisions and pass a “clean” $1.1 billion Zika response measure, like the one that already passed the chamber in May. Whether House Republicans would go along is not clear, and Speaker Paul Ryan last week stated that his chamber would not accept a bill that did not preserve the restriction on funding for Planned Parenthood.
On the other side of the Capitol, House Republicans remain divide on a strategy for the CR. A conference meeting was held last Friday, but members remain split on setting the scope and length of a CR. While many members support a short-term CR, the more conservative wing of the conference is pushing for a six-month extension that would keep the government running at current levels into the next session of Congress. A six-month CR is unacceptable to the President and Democrats, as well as to some Republicans, so it is unlikely to be able to pass the Senate in any event. In addition, several members want to attach controversial policy riders, including a ban on more Syrian refugees. The House may not have much of choice in the matter if the Senate acts first on a short-term CR and leaves town. A government shutdown before the November 8 election would be devastating for Republicans , particularly for incumbents already facing tough races and with an unorthodox Republican presidential nominee at the top of the ticket.
In terms of floor activity, the House of Representatives is scheduled to return on Monday, with votes expected on 19 bills that will be considered under suspension of the rules. The suspension package includes legislation reported out of the Foreign Affairs, Veterans Affairs, Natural Resources, and the Energy and Commerce Committees.
On Tuesday, members will take up two additional bills under suspension of the rules before considering H.R. 3590, the Halt Tax Increases on the Middle Class and Seniors Act, legislation that would roll back changes scheduled to take place in 2017 under the Affordable Care Act to the tax deduction for out-of-pocket medical expenses. Under current law, taxpayers can deduct medical expenses which exceed 7.5 percent of their adjusted gross income (AGI) for an individual year. Under the Affordable Care Act, this threshold is scheduled to increase to 10 percent of AGI in 2017. H.R. 3590 would amend the Internal Revenue Code to preserve the threshold at 7.5 percent of AGI. Consideration of H.R. 3590 will be subject to a rule.
Once the suspension bills have been considered, members will take up H.R. 5620, the VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act of 2016. The goal of H.R. 5620 is to increase accountability at the Department of Veterans Affairs by shortening the appeals process for adverse personnel actions to no more than 77 days and strengthening protections for whistleblowers. The legislation also includes a provision to modernize the disability appeals process. Consideration of H. R. 5620 will be subject to a rule.
Following consideration of H.R. 5620, the House will begin consideration of H.R. 5226, the Regulatory Integrity Act of 2016, subject to a rule. The legislation would direct each federal agency to make information regarding its regulatory actions publicly available in a searchable format. That information would have to include the date a regulation was proposed, its current status, an estimate of when the regulation would be final, and a brief description of the regulation. In addition, agencies would be required to track the details of all public communications about pending regulatory actions.
The House will also consider H.R. 5351, legislation to prohibit the transfer of any of the remaining terrorist prisoners detained at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The bill would prevent any prisoner transfer until either the end of this year or the enactment of a 2017 defense authorization bill, which currently contains a similar provision. President Obama, who campaigned on the promise of closing the Guantanamo Bay facility, in August approved the transfer of 15 detainees to the United Arab Emirates. That move leaves some 60 or so prisoners at the facility, and congressional Republicans are intent on blocking any further prisoner transfers from occurring in the last four months of President Obama’s term. Consideration of H.R. 5351 will be subject to a rule.
The hearing calendar is particularly busy this week, as committee and subcommittee chairmen attempt to cover important priorities and events before Congress adjourns for the election.
Following the observance of the 15th anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks on Sunday, many events in the House and Senate this week are focused on homeland security and the prevention of terrorism. The House Homeland Security Committee is scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon to mark up 9 pieces of legislation, including H.R. 5859, the Community Counterterrorism Preparedness Act, and H.R. 5943, the Transit Security Grant Program Flexibility Act, two bills that would bolster counterterrorism and security efforts. The House Homeland Security Committee is scheduled to meet again on Wednesday morning to examine the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) capabilities to identify and track foreign fighters and other bad actors attempting to enter the United States and other evolving challenges for the agency. Officials from DHS agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, and the Transportation Security Administration will be among the witnesses providing testimony to the committee.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittees on National Security and Government Operations will meet jointly on Wednesday afternoon to discuss radicalization in the U.S. and the rise of terrorism.
On a related note, cybersecurity is another topic that dominates the hearing schedule for the week. The Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on Tuesday morning to discuss encryption and cyber matters with Under Secretary Of Defense For Intelligence Marcell Lettre II, and Admiral Michael Rogers, who serves concurrently as Commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, Director of the National Security Agency, and Chief of the Central Security Service.
The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology is also scheduled to meet on Tuesday to discuss the potential for and prevention of cyber attacks on voting machines during the upcoming election.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight, Agency Action, Federal Rights and Federal Courts, will hold a Wednesday hearing regarding U.S. oversight of the internet. Senator Cruz and other congressional republicans have been vociferous in their criticism of the Administration’s plans to transfer internet governance from the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to ICANN, an international nonprofit organization, scheduled to take effect on October 1. Senator Cruz has stated that the transition could do “significant, irreparable damage” to the U.S. and free speech around the world, and said the Wednesday hearing will “investigate the possible dangers” of the plan.
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence will meet for a closed hearing on Thursday morning to review the committee report on the review of unauthorized disclosures by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.
Two events this week will focus on the failure of a July coup attempt in Turkey and the future of the U.S.-Turkey relationship. Accusations that the U.S. was involved in the effort to topple the Turkish government have been rampant in the Turkish press, but government officials and even President Obama have denied any knowledge of the coup plot. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will meet in a closed session on Monday evening with representatives from the Department of State, Department of Defense, and the Director of National Intelligence. The House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats will meet in open session on Wednesday afternoon to hear from experts and academics on the erosion of democratic values in the country, including the Turkish government’s crackdowns on political opposition, the media, and religious freedom.
Three major agency oversight hearings are scheduled this week. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler and the four FCC Commissioners will appear before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on Thursday morning to examine policy changes proposed and implemented by the agency. Many congressional Republicans, along with the Republican members of the FCC, have been critical of the FCC for what they consider overreach by the agency in applying its rules and issuing regulations. A recently revised and highly partisan proposal to open up the cable television set-top box market is likely to receive much attention at the hearing, as well as Internet oversight authority and broadband privacy. The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology held an oversight hearing in July that covered these same issues.
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Director Michelle Lee will be providing testimony before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet on Tuesday. The hearing is expected to cover the general function of the Patent and Trademark Office, as well as USPTO’s implementation of the America Invents Act (AIA), a major overhaul of the U.S. patent system that was passed by Congress and signed into law in 2011. Also of concern to the subcommittee is a recent report by the Department of Commerce Inspector General which found significant time and attendance fraud among employees at USPTO. Subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa stated the report “raises serious questions about the integrity of our patent system.”
The Senate Budget Committee will meet Thursday afternoon to conduct an oversight hearing on the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the nonpartisan agency that provides Congress with economic analysis and budget estimates. CBO Director Keith Hall will be the sole witness appearing before the committee.
The House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice will meet on Tuesday to explore federal diversity jurisdiction, a federal court’s power to hear any civil case where the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000 and no plaintiff shares a state of citizenship with any defendant. Experts and academics are expected to provide testimony before the committee.
Also occurring on Tuesday is a House Financial Services Committee mark up of legislation sponsored by Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) to replace or scale back key portions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act enacted in 2010. The reforms include language to restructure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), provide banks relief from complex regulatory environment, and end “too-big-to-fail” and taxpayer bailouts of financial institutions. The draft also includes a provision intended to block the Department of Labor’s controversial “fiduciary” rule. The rule sets new standards for investment advisors with respect to retirement accounts. Press reports indicate members of the Financial Services Committee will offer many amendments given the scope of the bill, meaning the hearing could continue throughout the week. House Democrats are largely opposed to the measure, but some committee members have announced their intent to offer amendments during the markup. Even if the measure should pass the full committee and survive a vote on the House floor, there is slim chance for its enactment. The measure would be considered dead on arrival in the Senate and guaranteed a veto from President Obama.
With health care a major issue on the campaign trail, Congressional Republicans will continue to knock the Administration and Democrats on issues related to the Affordable Care Act and rising health insurance premiums. This week the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and Subcommittee on Health will meet jointly to review the ACA. Also on Wednesday, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will host a hearing to examine significant marketplace premium increases that have occurred since ACA implementation in 2014. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will meet on Thursday to discuss the state of health insurance markets, with several state insurance commissioners providing testimony on the setup and participation of public health exchanges, as well as the numerous insurance carriers who have pulled out of participation in the public marketplaces.
Two Senate committees will focus on flood response. The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs is hosting a hearing Tuesday morning regarding the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a program that provides affordable insurance to property owners and is managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The hearing will review the recommendations of the Technical Mapping Advisory Council’s 2015 Annual Report on flood mapping and risk assessment and fee structuring. The hearing is also likely to cover the fiscal insolvency of the NFIP, currently $23 billion in debt. The program is funded by insurance premiums and fees paid by policyholders, but can draw from the Treasury to help fund catastrophic events. Following the major storms of 2005, Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma, and Superstorm Sandy in 2012, the NFIP incurred substantial debt to help affected homeowners who had flood insurance coverage.
The Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship is scheduled to host a Thursday hearing on the federal response to devastating flooding that occurred in parts of Louisiana in August. The hearing will examine the initial response to the disaster and the federal resources available to the impacted communities, including coordination efforts between FEMA, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet is confirmed to testify before the Committee, and HUD Secretary Julian Castro has been invited to attend. FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate declined an invitation by Chairman David Vitter (R-LA) to appear on the witness panel.
The full schedule of events for the week ahead is included below:
Monday, September 12, 2016
House Committees
Markup: Caller ID Spoofing/Rural Call Quality Legislation
House Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
4:00 PM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Markup: H.R. 4365 H.R. 1192 H.R. 1209 H.R. 1877 and H.R. 2713
Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Health
5:00 PM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Classifications and Redactions in FBI’s Investigative File
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
5:00 PM, 2154 Rayburn HOB
Senate Committees
Closed Hearing: The Turkish Putsch and the Future of U.S.-Turkish Cooperation
Committee on Foreign Relations
5:00 PM, SVC-217
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
House Committees
Past Present and Future of SNAP: Improving Innovation and Success in Employment and Training Programs
Committee on Agriculture | Subcommittee on Nutrition
10:00 AM, 1300 Longworth HOB
Markup: Caller ID Spoofing/Rural Call Quality Legislation
House Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
10:00 AM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Moving the Line of Scrimmage: Re-examining the Defense-in-Depth Strategy
Committee on Homeland Security | Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security
10:00 AM, 311 Canon HOB
Exploring Federal Diversity Jurisdiction
Committee on the Judiciary | Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice
11:00 AM, 2237 Rayburn HOB
Oversight Hearing on Economic Impacts from Commonwealth-only Worker Program in the Northern Mariana Islands
Committee on Natural Resources
11:00 AM, 1334 Longworth HOB
Examining Preservation of State Department Federal Records
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
10:00 AM, 2154 Rayburn HOB
Protecting the 2016 Elections from Cyber and Voting Machine Attacks
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
10:00 AM, 2318 Rayburn HOB
The Cumulative Burden of President Obama’s Executive Orders on Small Contractors
Committee on Small Business | Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations; Subcommittee on Contracting and Workforce
11:00 AM
Back to School: Review of Tax-Exempt College and University Endowments
Committee on Ways and Means | Subcommittee on Oversight
10:00 AM, 1100 Longworth HOB
Markup: H.R. 4365 H.R. 1192 H.R. 1209 H.R. 1877 and H.R. 2713
Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Health
2:00 PM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Markup: Pending Legislation
Committee on Homeland Security
2:00 PM, 311 Canon HOB
Oversight of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Committee on the Judiciary | Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet
1:00 PM, 2237 Rayburn HOB
21st Century Conservation Practices
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on Interior
2:00 PM, 2154 Rayburn HOB
Markup: Financial CHOICE Act
House Financial Services
TBA, 2128 Rayburn HOB
Senate Committees
Markup: Resilient Federal Forests Act
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
10:00 AM, 328-A Russell SOB
Encryption and Cyber Matters
Senate Armed Services
9:30 AM, 216 Hart SOB
National Flood Insurance Program
Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
10:30 AM, 538 Dirksen SOB
Better Online Ticket Sales Act of 2016
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation – Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance and Data Security
2:30 PM, 253 Russell SOB
Closed Briefing: Intelligence Matters
Select Intelligence Committee
2:30 PM
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
House Committees
American Agricultural Trade with Cuba
Committee on Agriculture
10:00 AM, 1300 Longworth HOB
Growing Risks to the Budget and Economy
Committee on The Budget
10:00 AM, 210 Canon HOB
Markup: H.R.5963, the “Supporting Youth Opportunity and Preventing Delinquency Act of 2016”
Committee on Education and the Workforce
10:00 AM, 2175 Rayburn HOB
The Affordable Care Act on Shaky Ground: Outlook and Oversight
Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
10:00 AM, HVC-210 CAPITOL
Disrupter Series: Advanced Robotics
Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade
10:30 AM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Markup: H.R. 5931, the “Prohibiting Future Ransom Payments to Iran Act”
Committee on Foreign Affairs
10:00 AM, 2172 Rayburn HOB
Shutting Down Terrorist Pathways into America
Committee on Homeland Security
10:00 AM, 311 Canon HOB
Legislative Hearing on H.R. 5780 “Utah Public Lands Initiative Act”
Committee on Natural Resources
10:00 AM, 1334 Longworth HOB
Examining the Affordable Care Act’s Premium Increases
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
9:00 AM, 2154 Rayburn HOB
Rules Changes for 115th Congress
House Rules Committee | Subcommittee on Rules and the Organization of the House
10 AM, H-313
Affirming Congress Constitutional Oversight Responsibilities: Subpoena Authority and Recourse for Failure to Comply with Lawfully Issued Subpoenas
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
10:00 AM, 2318 Rayburn HOB
IRS Puts Small Businesses through Audit Wringer
Committee on Small Business
11:00 AM
An Examination of VA’s Misuse of Employee Settlement Agreements
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
10:30 AM, 334 Cannon HOB
Exploring the Use of Technology and Innovation to Create Efficiencies, Higher Quality, and Better Access for Beneficiaries in Health Care
Committee on Ways and Means | Subcommittee on Health
10:00 AM, 1100 Longworth HOB
Next Generation Air Space Control: Ensuring Air Force Compliance by January 1 2020
Committee on Armed Services | Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
3:30 PM, 2118 Rayburn HOB
Turkey After the July Coup Attempt
Committee on Foreign Affairs | Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats
2:00 PM, 2200 Rayburn HOB
Eritrea: A Neglected Regional Threat
Committee on Foreign Affairs | Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations
2:00 PM, 2172 Rayburn HOB
Radicalization in the U.S. and the Rise of Terrorism
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform| Subcommittee on Government Operations; Subcommittee on National Security
2:00 PM, 2154 Rayburn HOB
Senate Committees
Terror Financing Risks of America’s $1.7 Billion Cash Payments to Iran
Committee on Banking, Housing, & Urban Affairs | Subcommittee on National Security and International Trade and Finance
10:30 AM, 538 Dirksen SOB
Protecting Girls: Global Efforts to End Child Marriage
Committee on Foreign Relations | Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women’s Issues
9:30 AM, 419 Dirksen SOB
Protecting Internet Freedom: Implications of Ending U.S. Oversight of the Internet
Committee on Judiciary |Subcommittee on Oversight, Agency Action, Federal Rights and Federal Courts
10:00 AM, 226 Dirksen SOB
Pending Legislation
Committee on Indian Affairs
2:15 PM
NATO Expansion and the Accession of Montenegro
Committee on Foreign Relations
2:15 PM, 419 Dirksen SOB
CBO Oversight
Committee on Budget
2:30 PM, 608 Dirksen SOB
The Future of the VA: Examining the Commission on Care Report and VA’s Response
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
2:30 PM, 418 Russell SOB
Maximizing Social Security Benefits
Committee on Special Aging
2:30 PM, 562 Dirksen SOB
Future of Nuclear Power
Committee on Appropriations | Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
2:30 PM, 138 Dirksen SOB
Thursday, September 15, 2016
House Committees
A Solution In Search of a Problem: EPAs Methane Regulations
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology | Subcommittee on Environment
9:30 AM, 2318 Rayburn HOB
The Department of Energy’s Role in Advancing the National Economic and Energy Security of the United States
Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Energy and Power
10:00 AM, 2322 Rayburn HOB
Nicaragua’s Democratic Collapse
Committee on Foreign Affairs | Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere
10:00 AM, 2172 Rayburn HOB
Closed Meeting: Consideration of Committee Report – Review of Unauthorized Disclosures by Former NSA Contractor Edward Snowden
Select Intelligence Committee
9:00 AM, HVC-304
Senate Committees
Brummer/Quintenz Nominations
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
10:00 AM,
Long-Term Defense Budget Challenges
Committee on Armed Services
9:30 AM, G-50 Dirksen SOB
FCC Oversight
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
10:00 AM, 253 Russell SOB
Afghanistan: U.S. Policy and International Commitments
Committee on Foreign Relations
9:45 AM, 419 Dirksen SOB
State of Health Insurance Markets
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
10:00 AM, 342 Dirksen SOB
Markup: Pending Legislation/Nominations
Committee on Judiciary
10:00 AM, 226 Dirksen SOB
Louisiana Flood Response
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
10:30 AM, 428-A Russell SOB
Closed Briefing: Intelligence Matters
Select Intelligence Committee
2:00 PM
Norway Civil Nuclear Agreement
Committee on Foreign Relations
2:15 PM, 419 Dirksen SOB