House Looks to Begin Work on NDAA, Senate Dems Down Two Votes to Begin July Work Period, Reconciliation Bill Alive Again
By Jason Pye - Director, Rule of Law Initiatives
Point of Order is a (mostly) weekly preview of key congressional activity for those with more than a passing interest in federal policy.
Nominees in the Senate: The Senate returns today at 3:00 pm to resume consideration of the nomination of Ashish S. Vazirani to serve as a Deputy Under Secretary of Defense. Before the recess, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) filed cloture on Vazirani’s nomination and the nominations of Steven M. Dettelbach to serve as the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Michael S. Barr to serve as a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; and Barr’s nomination to serve as Vice-Chair for Supervision of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. A roll call vote on Vazirani’s nomination is expected around 5:30 pm today. A roll call vote on the nomination of Bernadette M. Meehan to serve as Ambassador to Chile will be scheduled in coordination with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
Return of the zombie reconciliation bill: Talks are ongoing between Leader Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) about a significantly scaled-down but still significant reconciliation bill. The focus of the negotiations is prescription drug costs for seniors, the fiscal stability of Medicare, tax increases, and climate change. The Senate Finance Committee has released the text of the prescription drug proposal, which would allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices. Manchin has reportedly signed off on the prescription drug proposal. The Congressional Budget Office projects that the proposal would reduce the deficit by $29.5 billion over five years (FY 2022-FY 2026) and $287.5 billion over ten years (FY 2022-FY 2031). Here are some things to keep in mind: 1) Manchin’s spokesperson recently said, “Senator Manchin still has serious unresolved concerns and there is a lot of work to be done,” 2) Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) may still be skittish about tax increases, 3) the budget resolution under which this reconciliation bill is authorized runs through September 30, and 4) Senate Democrats don’t have an operational majority at the moment.
Schumer is down with the sickness: Speaking of Schumer, the Democratic Leader has tested positive for COVID-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms. Although he will work from home, Schumer won’t be able to vote while he recovers in quarantine.
Wishing Senator Leahy the best: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) fell and broke his hip at his home on June 29. It remains to be seen how long he’ll be out while he recovers from surgery. Leahy, who’s the president pro-tempore of the Senate, isn’t seeking reelection. We wish the Senator the best in his recovery and hope to see him back in action soon.
Senate committee schedule: Below are some Senate committee hearings that may be of interest. The full Senate committee schedule for the week is here.
A Post-Roe America: The Legal Consequences of the Dobbs Decision (Judiciary, Tuesday at 10:00 am)
Nominations Hearing (Finance, Tuesday at 10:00 am)
Advancing Public Transportation under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Update from the Federal Transit Administration (Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Tuesday at 10:00 am)
Examining the 2022 National Travel and Tourism Strategy (Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Tourism, Trade, and Export Promotion; Tuesday at 10:00 am)
Nominations Hearing (Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Tuesday at 10:00 am)
Instability and the State of Democracy in the Sahel and the U.S. Policy Response (Foreign Relations, Tuesday at 10:30 am)
Role of the Federal Government in Attacking the Financial Networks of Cartels (International Narcotics Control, Tuesday at 2:00 pm)
Nominations Hearing (Judiciary, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Nominations Hearing (Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Nominations Hearing (Foreign Relations, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Legislative Hearing (Environment and Public Works, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Reproductive Care in a Post-Roe America: Barriers, Challenges, and Threats to Women's Health (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Pathways To Lower Energy Prices (Energy and Natural Resources, Wednesday at 2:30 pm)
Executive Business Meeting (Judiciary, Thursday at 9:00 am)
Advancing National Security and Foreign Policy Through Export Controls: Oversight of the Bureau of Industry and Security (Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Thursday at 10:00 am)
Nominations Hearing (Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Thursday at 10:00 am)
Protecting the Homeland from Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Thursday at 10:15 am)
If you’re interested in watching any of these hearings online, you can find committee websites here.
House schedule and suspensions: The House returns Tuesday at 2:00 pm for legislative business. First and last votes on Tuesday are expected around 6:30 pm. The chamber will be in session through Friday, and the last votes for the week are expected at 3:00 pm that day. There are 15 bills (listed below) on the suspension calendar for the week. (The cost estimate for the suspension bills is here.) Additional legislative items are possible.
Reaffirming the economic partnership between the United States and the Caribbean nations and recognizing the need to strengthen trade and investment between the United States and the Caribbean nations, our "Third Border," H.Res. 1168 (Ways and Means Committee)
Access for Veterans to Records Act, H.R. 7337 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act, H.R. 7535 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
Improving Government for America’s Taxpayers Act, H.R. 7331 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
First Responder Fair RETIRE Act, H.R. 521 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
Computers for Veterans and Students Act, H.R. 3544 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 850 Walnut Street in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, as the ‘‘First Sergeant Leonard A. Funk, Jr. Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 5794 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 101 South Willowbrook Avenue in Compton, California, as the ‘‘PFC James Anderson, Jr., Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 1095 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4020 Broadway Street in Houston, Texas, as the ‘‘Benny C. Martinez Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 203 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1961 North C Street in Oxnard, California, as the ‘‘John R. Hatcher III Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 5659 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2245 Rosa L Parks Boulevard in Nashville, Tennessee, as the ‘‘Thelma Harper Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 5271 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1801 Town and Country Drive in Norco, California, as the ‘‘Lance Corporal Kareem Nikoui Memorial Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 5809 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 226 North Main Street in Roseville, Ohio, as the ‘‘Ronald E. Rosser Post Office,’’ H.R. 4622 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 82422 Cadiz Jewett Road in Cadiz, Ohio, as the ‘‘John Armor Bingham Post Office,’’ H.R. 2472 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2141 Ferry Street in Anderson, California, as the ‘‘Norma Comnick Post Office Building,’’ H.R. 228 (Oversight and Reform Committee)
The House is expected to vote on seven postponed suspensions that were originally supposed to get votes during the week of June 20. Those bills are below.
National Computer Forensics Institute Reauthorization Act, H.R. 7174 (Homeland Security Committee)
PREVENT ACT, H.R. 5274 (Homeland Security Committee)
Promoting United States International Leadership in 5G, H.R. 1934 (Foreign Affairs Committee)
Condemning the October 25, 2021, military coup in Sudan and standing with the people of Sudan, H.Con.Res. 59 (Foreign Affairs Committee)
Calling for stability and the cessation of violence and condemning ISIS-affiliated terrorist activity in northern Mozambique, including the Cabo Delgado Province, and for other purposes, H.Res. 720 (Foreign Affairs Committee)
Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the execution-style murders of United States citizens Ylli, Agron, and Mehmet Bytyqi in the Republic of Serbia in July 1999, H.Con.Res. 45 (Foreign Affairs Committee)
Calling on the Government of the Republic of Rwanda to release Paul Rusesabagina on humanitarian grounds, H.Res. 892 (Foreign Affairs Committee)
Bills that come to the floor under suspension of the rules require two-thirds of members present and voting for passage. This is the most common way that bills considered by the House come to the floor. Some of these bills may be passed by a voice vote, rather than a roll call vote. Most bills that come to the floor under suspension aren’t widely considered controversial, although leadership may occasionally test a bill under suspension to gauge opposition or sneak a bill through the chamber.
Rule bills: The House Rules Committee will meet Tuesday at 12:00 pm to markup the rule for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2023, H.R. 7900; the Women’s Health Protection Act, H.R. 8296; the Ensuring Access to Abortion Act, H.R. 8297; the Active Shooter Alert Act, H.R. 6538. Additional legislation is possible.
About the Rule bills: The NDAA is pretty self-explanatory in terms of its purpose. It authorizes appropriations totaling $840.2 billion, a 4 percent increase over FY 2022. According to the Congressional Budget Office, $317.3 billion is for operation and maintenance, $174.5 billion is for military personnel, $161.3 billion is for procurement, $138.6 billion is for research and development, $30.5 billion is for atomic activities, and $16.5 billion is for military construction and family housing. Nearly 1,200 amendments were filed to the NDAA, so expect a bunch of votes this week, even though amendments may be packaged together en bloc. (More on amendments in a minute.) The Women’s Health Protection Act would codify and expand abortion access. The legislation appears to be the same as the version that passed the House in September and failed in the Senate in February. The Ensuring Access to Abortion Act would prohibit anyone acting under color of law from restricting or impeding a woman from crossing state lines to seek abortion services. You can find more information about the bill here. The Active Shooter Alert Act would create an AMBER alert-style system to warn people in a community if there’s a situation with an active shooter. The bill was brought up on suspension last month but failed to get the requisite two-thirds for passage. It’s coming out now under a rule.
We’re watching NDAA amendments: As I mentioned, there are nearly 1,200 amendments to NDAA. Among the amendments we’re watching are the EQUAL Act (#240) and the SAFE Banking Act (#107). Obviously, the EQUAL Act is one of our biggest priorities in this Congress. The EQUAL Act cures an arbitrary and racially disparate aspect of federal sentencing law by eliminating the sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses, both for future cases and, on a case-by-case basis, for people who have already been sentenced. The standalone bill passed the House in September 2021 by a vote of 361 to 66. Similarly, the SAFE Banking Act passed the House in April by a vote of 321 to 101. There are a handful of others we’re paying attention to as well. If any of these amendments are made in order, Due Process Institute will have a vote alert this week. So, if you’re a House staffer, keep an eye on your inbox.
January 6 hearings continue: The Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol is scheduled to have another hearing Tuesday at 10:00 am. The committee had a surprise hearing on June 28 that featured testimony from former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson. The testimony was nothing short of shocking and anger-inducing. Although some have disputed parts of her testimony while others have confirmed parts, Hutchinson appeared credible. Making things more interesting, former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, who had been subpoenaed, testified before the committee on Friday. Notably, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), who serves on the committee, noted that Cipollone didn’t contradict other testimony the committee has taken. The witnesses for tomorrow’s hearing aren’t yet available, but the hearing tomorrow is expected to feature recorded testimony from Cipollone about seizing voting machines. Tomorrow’s hearing will be available here. Separately, there may be another primetime hearing on Thursday.
House committee schedule: Below are some House committee hearings that may be of interest. The full House committee schedule for the week can be found here.
Ending Veteran Hunger: Examining the Impact of COVID-19 on Food Insecurity (Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, Monday at 10:00 am PDT)
The Impact of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs Decision on Abortion Rights and Access Across the United States (Oversight and Reform, Wednesday at 9:30 am)
Markup of Legislative Measures (Judiciary, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Better Together: Examining the Unified Proposed Rule to Modernize the Community Reinvestment Act (Financial Services Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Nuclear Waste Cleanup: Research and Development Opportunities for the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Energy; Wednesday at 10:00 am)
A 2022 Review of the Farm Bill: Forestry (Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Fintech and Transparency in Small Business Lending (Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations; Wednesday at 10:00 am)
Nowhere to Live: Profits, Disinvestment, and the American Housing Crisis (Ways and Means, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
The State of General Aviation (Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation, Wednesday at 10:00 am)
What’s Next: The Threat to Individual Freedoms in a Post-Roe World (Judiciary, Thursday at 10:00 am)
Constituent Services: Building a More Customer-Friendly Congress (Modernization of Congress, Thursday at 10:00 am)
A 2022 Review of the Farm Bill: The State of Credit for Young, Beginning, and Underserved Producers (Agriculture, Thursday at 10:00 am)
Examining the U.S. Interest in Regional Security Cooperation in the Middle East and North Africa: Opportunities, Obstacles, and Objectives (Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Middle East, North Africa, and Global Counterterrorism; Thursday at 2:00 pm)
Climate Smart from Farm to Fork: Building an Affordable and Resilient Food Supply Chain (Climate Crisis, Friday at 9:00 am)
If you’re interested in watching any of these hearings online, you can find committee websites here.
WWII Medal of Honor recipient to lie in honor: Hershel Woodrow “Woody” Williams will lie in honor in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Thursday between 10:30 am and 3:00 pm. Williams, who passed last month at the age of 98, received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service during World War II in the Battle of Iwo Jima. He was the last living recipient of the Medal of Honor. Semper Fi, Sir.
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