The release of President Obama’s eighth and final budget requesting funds for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 is likely to take up a great deal of attention in Washington, D.C. this week, but on Capitol Hill the Senate will be attempting to forge a path forward on comprehensive energy legislation that has stalled after two weeks of consideration, while the House will be taking up a number of suspensions related to veterans affairs and delving into legislation on scientific research and disclosure of nutrition information to consumers.
The Senate returns on Monday with a vote scheduled on a judicial nomination. On Wednesday, the Senate will consider H.R. 757, legislation to impose stricter sanctions on North Korea. Introduced earlier last year, the legislation is moving forward due to North Korea’s alleged hydrogen bomb test in January (although public reporting indicates that experts are uniformly agreed that the test was too small to be a hydrogen device). North Korea is now planning a test of a long-range ballistic missile, so the timing of the consideration of the legislation is not accidental. The House-passed sanctions legislation being considered in the Senate would require the Administration to sanction any person or entity that has engaged in activities or transactions in North Korea related to weapons of mass destruction, significant arms, luxury goods, money laundering, counterfeiting, censorship, or human rights abuses. The bill also extends authority to the President to sanction individuals engaging in financial transactions to support any of North Korea’s illicit activities or cyber-threats.
It is likely the Senate will also consider the conference report to the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015. The customs bill is the final piece of a major four-part trade package, which included Trade Promotion Authority, that moved through Congress last year. In addition to funding the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency, the customs bill also provides streamlined rules to stop importers from evading U.S. antidumping and countervailing duties, provides stronger protections for intellectual property and includes language intended to address currency manipulation. The customs conference report passed the House in December by a vote of 256-158. It is has been delayed in the Senate over its inclusion of language making permanent the ban on taxing the Internet. Proponents of legislation to allow states to impose a sales tax on remote sales, led by Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Republicans Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), had sought to use the permanent extension of the Internet-tax ban as a vehicle for their legislation and have sought to block the customs bill in order to peel that section out of the bill. They appear to have failed and the bill is poised to pass the Senate and be signed into law by President Obama.
As mentioned above, behind the scenes in the Senate this week, leadership will be attempting to find some path forward on S. 2012, a comprehensive, bipartisan energy bill that has been the pending business before the chamber over the past two weeks. After working through numerous amendments, action on the bill hit an impasse over an amendment to provide $600 million in federal emergency assistance to Flint, Michigan to address lead contamination in the city’s drinking water. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell attempted two cloture votes on S. 2012 last Thursday, but Democrats filibustered both attempts to close debate on the bill, stating they would not move forward without including adequate assistance for Flint. Press reports indicate negotiations over the funding continued into the weekend, and Majority Leader McConnell expressed his hope to “salvage” the underlying energy bill. Either way, further floor action on the bill is unlikely until after the Senate returns from its one-week break for President’s Day the week of February 15.
On the other side of the Capitol, the House is scheduled to convene for legislative business on Tuesday, with votes expected on a dozen bills under suspension of the rules, a majority of which were reported favorably by the Veterans Affairs Committee.
On Wednesday, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 3293, the Scientific Research in the National Interest Act, subject to a rule. The controversial legislation sponsored by House Science Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) would require the National Science Foundation to make “an affirmative determination, justified in writing, that the grant or agreement promotes the progress of science in the United States […]” prior to awarding federal funds through a grant or cooperative agreement for basic scientific research or education. This language was included in the House-passed America COMPETES Act, a broader research-funding reform bill that passed the House on a partisan vote last May. While intended to ensure greater accountability in the federal funding of research, many in the scientific community are opposed to what they fear will produce political interference in the award of federal grants. The Democratic conference is expected to oppose the bill.
Following the conclusion of the debate on H.R. 3293, the House will begin consideration of H.R. 3442, the Debt Management and Fiscal Responsibility Act, a bill that would restructure the manner in which increases in the federal debt limit are considered. Instead of simply providing to Congress a date at which the Treasury would reach its borrowing limit and requesting a debt limit increase, under this legislation the Secretary of the Treasury would be required to submit to Congress reports on the state of the national debt, drivers and composition of the debt, and future debt projections, as well as a plan for how the U.S. will meet debt obligations if the debt limit is raised. The Treasury Secretary would also be required to appear before House and Senate committees to testify about the national debt and the administration’s debt-reduction proposals. Congressional approval of a debt-limit increase would still be necessary, although U.S. borrowing authority is currently authorized through March 2017 under a budget agreement negotiated last October by former Speaker of the House John Boehner. Consideration of H.R. 3293 will be subject to a rule and is expected to stretch into Thursday.
The final item on the House agenda before its scheduled President’s Day recess will be consideration of H.R. 2017, the Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act of 2015, subject to a rule. This legislation would amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act to revise the information certain restaurants and retail food establishments must disclose about nutrition to the consumer. Under the Affordable Care Act, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was authorized to issue new rules on the disclosure of nutritional information for menu items. The FDA issued two new rules in 2014 requiring that certain chain restaurants and similar retail food establishments, grocery, and convenience stores with 20 or more locations disclose certain nutrient information for standard menu items. Both rules were scheduled to be implemented at the end of last year. After a great deal of push back from the restaurant, fast food, and retail communities over the requirements due to the costs and burdens they imposed, Congress authorized a delay in their implementation until December 2016. The delay was mandated so that Congress could itself play a role in the resolution of the issue, and key legislators have been working with industry, trade, and other groups to navigate a path forward. H.R. 2017 would clarify the FDA requirements and facilitate compliance for certain industry sectors without undoing the regulatory scheme to provide consumers with adequate nutritional information. The legislation was reported favorably out of the House Energy & Commerce Committee by a 36-12 vote.
The President is expected to release his final budget request, for FY2017, on Tuesday morning and many congressional committees will meet this week to review various provisions of the request. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew will appear before the Senate Finance Committee Wednesday to discuss revenue proposals in the President’s budget, and before the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday to discuss President Obama’s budget proposals for the Department of Treasury. Sylvia Burwell, Secretary Of Health And Human Services, is also scheduled to appear before the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee. IRS Commissioner John Koskinen is also scheduled to appear before Senate Finance Committee as well as the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services.
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee meets Wednesday morning to review Air Traffic Control Reform Proposals, a provision of a new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill. The current authorization for FAA activity and funding is set to expire March 31, a six-month extension that was enacted last year as a stopgap measure to give legislators more time to work through an agreement on a long-term reauthorization. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) introduced the Aviation Innovation, Reform and Reauthorization, or AIRR Act, in the House last week. This legislation would reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration and its funding until 2022. His legislation, however contains a controversial proposal to remove air traffic control from FAA ownership and authority and place it under the control of a new non-profit, non-governmental organization, which many in the industry and the committee’s Ranking Member Peter DeFazio (D-OR) oppose.
Also on the hearing schedule are several House events focused on international visas. The House Oversight & Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Operations and the full Homeland Security Committee have scheduled Wednesday hearings on recent visa waiver program restrictions that have been reformed by the White House to add exceptions for Iran. The House Judiciary Committee is also scheduled to meet on Thursday to review the Investor Visa, or EB-5 Visa Program. The program, designed to allow foreign investors to gain permanent residence in the United States, has been reauthorized by Congress several times, and is currently set to expire on September 30. Congress is considering potential reforms and oversight mechanisms to the program, likely to be highlighted in the House Judiciary Committee hearing. The EB-5 visa program was the subject of a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week.
A full schedule of events for the week ahead is included below:
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Senate Committees
Examining Worldwide Threats
Senate Armed Services
Full Committee Hearing
9:30 a.m., G-50 Dirksen Bldg.
Consideration of 6 Biomedical Innovation Bills
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Full Committee Markup
10 a.m., 430 Dirksen Bldg.
Department of Defense Nuclear Acquisition Programs and the Nuclear Doctrine
Senate Armed Services – Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 232-A Russell
Federal-State Fish/Wildlife Management Interactions
Senate Environment and Public Works
Full Committee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 406 Dirksen Bldg.
The Way Forward in Syria and Iraq
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Closed Briefing
5 p.m., SVC-217
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
House Committees
2016 Agenda for CFTC
House Agriculture
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 1300 Longworth Bldg.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Budget
House Appropriations
Full Committee Hearing
10:30 a.m., 2362-B Rayburn Bldg.
Next Steps for K-12 Education: Implementing the Promise to Restore State/Local Control
House Education and the Workforce – Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Medicaid/CHIP Federal Assistance Percentage
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Health
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Monetary Policy and the State of the Economy
House Financial Services
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
From Iraq and Syria to Libya and Beyond: Evolving ISIL Threat
House Foreign Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
National Security and Law Enforcement: Breaking the New Visa Waiver Law to Appease Iran
House Homeland Security
Full Committee Hearing
11 a.m.
The Costly Impacts of Predation and Conflicting Federal Statutes on Native/Endangered Fish Species
House Natural Resources – Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Midnight Regulations: Examining Executive Branch Overreach
House Science, Space and Technology
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
Export Control Reform (Part I): Challenges for Small Business
House Small Business – Subcommittee on Agriculture, Energy and Trade
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Air Traffic Control Reform Proposals
House Transportation and Infrastructure
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
Veterans’ Affairs Budget Request
House Veterans’ Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
Commodity Futures Trading Commission Budget
House Appropriations – Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee Hearing
2:30 p.m.
Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
Subcommittee Hearing
3:30 p.m.
Future of the Army
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
CPSC Industry Perspectives
House Energy and Commerce – Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
Global Zika Epidemic: Emerging in the Americas
House Foreign Affairs – Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations
Subcommittee Hearing
1:15 p.m.
ISIS-Inspired Attacks
House Foreign Affairs – Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
Visa Waiver Program Restrictions
House Oversight and Government Reform – Subcommittee on Government Operations
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
Oversight of SBA Advocacy/Ombudsman Offices
House Small Business – Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations
Subcommittee Hearing
1 p.m.
A Review of VA’s Loan Guarantee Program and Specially Adaptive Housing Grant Program
House Veterans’ Affairs – Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
HHS Budget
House Ways and Means
Full Committee Hearing
2 p.m.
Senate Committees
Air Force Budget Estimates
Senate Appropriations – Subcommittee on Defense
Subcommittee Hearing
10:30 a.m., 192 Dirksen Bldg.
Importance of Enacting a New Water Resources Development Act
Senate Environment and Public Works
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 406 Dirksen Bldg.
Budget Revenue Proposals
Senate Finance
Full Committee Hearing
10:30 a.m., 215 Dirksen Bldg.
Iran-Robert Levinson Resolution
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Markup
10 a.m.
U.S. Policy in Central Africa
Senate Foreign Relations
Full Committee Hearing
11 a.m.
Pending Legislation
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Full Committee Markup
10 a.m., 342 Dirksen Bldg.
Mental Health and the Justice System
Senate Judiciary
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 226 Dirksen Bldg.
FY2017 Budget
Senate Veterans’ Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
IRS Budget
Senate Finance
Full Committee Hearing
2 p.m., 215 Dirksen Bldg.
Global Drug Trafficker Scam on Seniors
Senate Special Aging
Full Committee Hearing
2:30 p.m., 562 Dirksen Bldg.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
House Committees
EPA Actions and the Rural Economy
House Agriculture
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 1300 Longworth Bldg.
Internal Revenue Service Budget
House Appropriations – Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., 2359 Rayburn Bldg.
U.S. Engagement in Central America
House Appropriations – Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m., B-308 Rayburn Bldg.
Agriculture Department Budget
House Appropriations – Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee Hearing
10:30 a.m., 2362-A Rayburn Bldg.
Afghanistan Security Forces Development
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
Subcommittee Hearing
10:30 a.m.
Air Force Budget and Readiness
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Readiness
Subcommittee Hearing
8 a.m.
Iran Nuclear Deal Oversight: Implementation and its Consequences
House Foreign Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
The Future of Iranian Terror Threats to the Homeland
House Homeland Security – Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Is the Investor Visa Program an Underperforming Asset?
House Judiciary
Full Committee Hearing
10:15 a.m.
Pending Legislation
House Natural Resources – Subcommittee on Federal Lands
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Export Control Reform (Part II)
House Small Business
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
Choice Consolidation: Improving VA Community Care Billing/Reimbursement
House Veterans’ Affairs – Subcommittee on Health
Subcommittee Hearing
10 a.m.
Treasury Budget
House Ways and Means
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m.
Foot and Mouth Disease Preparedness
House Agriculture – Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m., 1300 Longworth Bldg.
Bureau of Reclamation Budget
House Appropriations
Full Committee Hearing
1:30 p.m., 2362-B Rayburn Bldg.
Atomic Energy Defense Budget
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
Biological Detection/Surveillance Programs
House Homeland Security – Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications
Subcommittee Hearing
2 p.m.
Resolving Issues With Confiscated Property in Cuba
House Judiciary – Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet
Subcommittee Hearing
1 p.m.
Carrier Air Wing/Future of Naval Aviation
House Armed Services – Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
Subcommittee Hearing
3:30 p.m.
Senate Committees
Future of the Army
Senate Armed Services
Full Committee Hearing
9:30 a.m., G-50 Dirksen Bldg
“The Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress”
Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 538 Dirksen Bldg.
HHS Budget
Senate Finance
Full Committee Hearing
10 a.m., 215 Dirksen Bldg.
Enforcing Regulatory Fines and Penalties
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs – Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management
Subcommittee Hearing
9:30 a.m., 342 Dirksen Bldg.
Pending Legislation
Senate Judiciary
Full Committee Markup
10:30 a.m., 226 Dirksen Bldg.
Friday, February 12, 2016
House Committees
Agriculture Inspector General Budget
House Appropriations – Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee Hearing
9:30 a.m., 2362-A Rayburn Bldg.