The week ahead will be a critical week for Congress, as the House of Representatives is scheduled to elect its new Speaker, and both chambers will be working to pass an extension of the nation’s debt limit and current highway funding authorization.
Wisconsin Representative and former vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan formally announced his candidacy for Speaker of the House last week and secured support from all three major factions of the House Republican Conference. While Rep. Ryan initially rejected the notion of running for the leadership post after current Speaker John Boehner announced that he would retire at the end of October, he was under pressure from Republican leaders on and off Capitol Hill who see him as the party’s best chance to unify the fractured conference. Rep. Ryan is expected to obtain the necessary 218 votes to become Speaker position. The leadership vote is scheduled to occur this week. The House Republican conference will hold its closed-door vote on Wednesday, and the public House floor vote will occur on Thursday.
It remains to be seen how Rep. Ryan will lead House Republicans through the remainder of the 114th Congress. While he has not served in a leadership position before and will be the youngest Speaker of the House in history, he is a respected leader on fiscal and economic issues, having served as Chairman of both the Budget and the Ways and Means Committees. Rep. Ryan will have to draw on this experience because Congress faces a quickly approaching December 11 deadline to act on must-pass spending legislation to keep the government running into 2016 or risk a government shutdown.
A more imminent fiscal deadline faces the House and Senate this week. Legislative action must be taken to lift the nation’s $18.1 trillion debt ceiling before November 3, which is the date the U.S. Treasury expects to reach its statutory borrowing limit. Without congressional action to lift the debt limit, the Treasury will not be able to meet its obligations, resulting in a potential default with grave implications for the global economy and the nation’s credit rating. Speaker Boehner has publicly stated his intent to pass an increase of the debt limit before his departure from the House of Representatives at the end of the month. The challenge for the Speaker is whether he can muster enough Republicans to join with Democrats in passing a clean bill to raise the debt limit. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has stated that he will wait for the House to act first on the debt limit, but a legislative proposal or vehicle to address the problem has yet to emerge and time is running out. At the end of last week, House leaders were suggesting the Senate should move a bill first. The path forward is not clear and the week will be challenging because of the need to raise the debt limit while also voting on the new Speaker.
One potential vehicle for the debt-limit increase could be legislation to extend the highway program’s authorization past its current October 29 expiration date. Even though the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a $325 billion six-year bill at a markup last week, the House will need additional time to consider the legislation on the floor, and once passed, the House bill will have to be reconciled with the Senate version passed earlier this year before a final bill can be approved by Congress. In the meantime, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) introduced legislation to extend the current program through November 20, 2015, and that short-term extension is scheduled to be considered by the House on Tuesday.
The House returns to session on Monday, with a vote expected on a dyslexia research bill under suspension of the rules. On Tuesday the House is expected to consider five bills reported out of the House Financial Services Committee, two bills dealing with homeland security issues, and the short-term highway authorization bill, all under suspension of the rules. The House may also vote to discharge legislation extending the Export-import Bank this week. As has been previously covered by this column, the authority for the Export-Import Bank lapsed at the end of June, due to congressional inaction and opposition from key Republicans. More than 30 Republican House members joined enough Democrats to support a discharge petition, a procedural maneuver that allows a bill to come to the floor for consideration without the normal committee process, to reauthorize the government-backed export credit agency. A vote on that legislation is expected this week in the House. The Senate has previously adopted a proposal to renew the Export-Import Bank as an amendment to its version of the highway bill, but once the House passes its version of the renewal, the path forward to enactment us unclear.
On the other side of the Capitol, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell hopes to complete work on S. 754, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA), in the first half of this week. The Senate returns on Monday, with a vote scheduled on a judicial nomination. On Tuesday the Senate will resume consideration of CISA, bipartisan legislation that encourages private sector entities to share information with the government regarding hacks and other cyber intrusions into their systems. Companies that choose to share their information would receive legal immunity. Last week, the Administration expressed its support for CISA. On Tuesday the Senate will vote on several amendments related to S. 754, including two amendments aimed at protecting personal information from exposure and an amendment to sunset the program after 6 years, before proceeding to a vote to invoke cloture (limit debate) on S. 754. All amendment votes will require a simple majority for passage, while the cloture vote will require 60 votes. Cloture is expected to be invoked, and a vote on final passage of the bill is likely thereafter Should the Senate pass S. 754, the bill will have to be reconciled with two House-passed bills before Congress can vote on a final cybersecurity bill.
Following the Senate’s completion of CISA consideration, it is likely the chamber will take action on a short-term highway extension and debt ceiling increase once the related bills are passed by the House of Representatives, although the Senate may wind up having to move first on the debt limit. Other legislation that may be considered before the end of the week includes S. 2200, the Workplace Advancement Act, which would make it illegal for employers to retaliate against employees for talking to each other about their salaries, and S. 2193, Stop Illegal Reentry Act, which would increase penalties for individuals who illegally reenter the United States after being removed.
Several Administration officials will be appearing as witnesses before congressional committees this week. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will brief members of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee on the Administration’s response to the conflict in Syria in a closed session on Tuesday morning. Also on Tuesday, Secretary Of Defense Ashton Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford, Jr. will provide testimony to the Senate Committee on Armed Services regarding U.S. military strategy in the Middle East. A Senate Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Wednesday on the same topic will feature testimony from General John Allen (USMC, Ret.), former commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan and current Special Presidential Envoy For The Global Coalition To Counter ISIL. León Rodríguez, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, will be appearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee at a Tuesday hearing on the Syrian humanitarian crisis.
Also on Tuesday, U.S. Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy will be appearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee regarding U.S. Secret Service agents’ alleged violations of the Privacy Act, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policy, and Secret Service policy in illegally accessing personal information on an internal Secret Service database. A recent report from the Inspector General found that five Secret Service employees had illegally accessed the personal information of House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) on an internal database a total of 60 times, and some leaked information contained in the database to the media in order to embarrass Rep. Chaffetz, who has been conducting a series of inquiries into wrongdoing and mismanagement at the Secret Service. Homeland Security Inspector General John Roth and U.S. Government Accountability Office Director of Information Technology Gregory Wilshusen will also appear at the hearing to discuss what is being done to protect private information that is housed on other federal government databases.
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch will also be testifying on Capitol Hill this week. Attorney General Lynch is scheduled to make her initial appearance before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday for a Justice Department oversight hearing.
A member of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, will provide testimony at a Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee confirmation hearing on Wednesday. Commissioner Rosenworcel has been nominated by President Obama for a second five-year term as commissioner at the FCC. Ms. Rosenworcel’s previous nomination received unanimous support in the U.S. Senate.
A full list of congressional hearings scheduled this week is detailed below:
Monday October 26, 2015
House Committees
Examining Critical Security Measures Communications and Response at our Nation’s Airports
House Homeland Security – Subcommittee on Transportation Security
Subcommittee Field Hearing
Oct. 26, 10:30 a.m., James M. Hanley Federal Bldg., Ceremonial Courtroom, 100 S. Clinton St., Syracuse, N.Y.
Tuesday October 27, 2015
House Committees
SNAP Program Outlook
House Agriculture – Subcommittee on Nutrition
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 1300 Longworth Bldg.
Shortening the Defense Acquisition Cycle
House Armed Services
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 2118 Rayburn Bldg.
Improving Career and Technical Training to Help Students Succeed in the Workforce
House Education and the Workforce – Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2261 Rayburn Bldg.
Common Carrier Regulation of the Internet: Investment Impacts
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2123 Rayburn Bldg.
Hazardous Waste E-Manifest Law Implementation
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy
Subcommittee Hearing
10:15 a.m., 2322 Rayburn Bldg.
DHS Science and Technology
House Science, Space and Technology
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 2318 Rayburn Bldg.
Mentor-Protege Programs and Small Business
House Small Business – Subcommittee on Contracting and Workforce
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2360 Rayburn Bldg.
U.S. Port Safety
House Transportation and Infrastructure – Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2253 Rayburn Bldg.
Undersea Warfare
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m., 2118 Rayburn Bldg.
The Global Crisis of Religious Freedom
House Foreign Affairs – Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations
Subcommittee Hearing
1 p.m., 2172 Rayburn Bldg.
Syrian Humanitarian Crisis
House Foreign Affairs – Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m., 2167 Rayburn Bldg.
Electronic Health Records Interoperability
House Veterans’ Affairs – Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations; House Oversight and Government Reform – Subcommittee on Information Technology
Subcommittees Joint Hearing
2 p.m., 2154 Rayburn Bldg.
Senate Committees
U.S. Middle East Strategy
Senate Armed Services
Full Committee Hearing
9:30 a.m., G-50 Dirksen Bldg.
Stream Protection Rule
Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Full Committee Oversight Hearing
10 a.m., 366 Dirksen Bldg.
The Internal Revenue Service’s Response to Committee Recommendations Contained in its August 5, 2015 Report
Senate Finance
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 215 Dirksen Bldg.
Syrian Conflict
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Closed Briefing
10 a.m., SVC-217 Capitol Visitor Center
Secret Service Issues
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs – Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management; House Homeland Security – Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency
Subcommittees Joint Hearing
1:30 p.m., HVC-210 Capitol Visitor Center
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
House Committees
Innovation in Agriculture
House Agriculture
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 1300 Longworth Bldg.
Restoring the Trust for America’s Most Vulnerable
House Budget
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 210 Cannon Bldg.
U.S. Broadband Infrastructure Deployment
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2123 Rayburn Bldg.
Update on Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy
Subcommittee Hearing
10:15 a.m., 2322 Rayburn Bldg.
Opportunity in Africa Bill, H.R. 2845
House Foreign Affairs
Full Committee Markup
10 a.m., 2172 Rayburn Bldg.
Justice Department Oversight
House Judiciary
Full Committee Oversight Hearing
10 a.m., 2141 Rayburn Bldg.
Discussion Draft of Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Modernization Act
House Natural Resources – Subcommittee on Federal Lands
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 1324 Longworth Bldg.
A Review of the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD) Program
House Science, Space and Technology – Subcommittee on Research and Technology
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2318 Rayburn Bldg.
Transition Assistance Program
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Military Personnel
Subcommittee Hearing
Oct. 28, 2 p.m., 2212 Rayburn Bldg.
Defense Department and Micro-Electronics
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
Subcommittee Hearing
3:30 p.m., 2118 Rayburn Bldg.
Tribal Recognition Bill, H.R. 3764
House Natural Resources – Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m., 1334 Longworth Bldg.
Lands Legislation, H.R. 1219, H.R. 1296, and H.R. 3062
House Natural Resources – Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans
Subcommittee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 1324 Longworth Bldg.
MAP-21 Program Consolidation
House Oversight and Government Reform – Subcommittee on Transportation and Public Assets
Subcommittee Hearing
3 p.m., 2154 Rayburn Bldg.
Senate Committees
Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration
Senate Appropriations – Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 192 Dirksen Bldg.
U.S. Rural Banking
Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs – Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 538 Dirksen Bldg.
FCC Commissioner Nomination Hearing
Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation
Full Committee Confirmation Hearing
10 a.m., 253 Russell Bldg.
U.S. Role and Strategy in the Middle East
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Hearing
9:30 a.m., 419 Dirksen Bldg.
Foreign Policy Nominees
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Confirmation Hearing
3:30 p.m., 419 Dirksen Bldg.
Small Business Retirement Plans
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions – Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security
Subcommittee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 216 Hart Bldg.
Biodefense Assessment
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 342 Dirksen Bldg.
Veterans’ Mental Health
Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 418 Russell Bldg.
Thursday, October 29, 2015
House Committees
U.S. Nuclear Deterrence Outlook
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
9 a.m., 2118 Rayburn Bldg.
Examining the Regulation of Diagnostic Tests and Laboratory Operations
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Health
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2123 Rayburn Bldg.
Regulation Legislation: H.R. 3438, Require Evaluation Before Implementing Executive Wishlists Act of 2015; H.R.2631, the Regulatory Predicitability for Business Growth Act of 2015
House Judiciary – Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law
Subcommittee Hearing
9 a.m., Location TBA.
Iran Human Rights
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC)
Full Committee Briefing
10 a.m., 2172 Rayburn Bldg.
Senate Committees
Alternative Approaches to Defense Strategy and Force Structure
Senate Armed Services
Full Committee Hearing
9:30 a.m., G-50 Dirksen Bldg.
Welfare and Poverty In America
Senate Finance
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 215 Dirksen Bldg.
State Department Nominee
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Confirmation Hearing
10 a.m., 419 Dirksen Bldg.
Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders in America: Priorities, Challenges, and Opportunities
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 430 Dirksen Bldg.
Executive Business Meeting
Senate Judiciary
Full Committee Markup
10 a.m., 226 Dirksen Bldg.
Intelligence Issues
Senate Select Intelligence
Full Committee Closed Briefing
2:30 p.m., 219 Hart Bldg.
Friday, October 30, 2015
House Committees
Choice Consolidation: Assessing VA’s Plan to Improve Care in the Community
House Veterans’ Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10:30 a.m., Location TBA