“Overdose deaths, particularly from prescription drugs and heroin, have reached epidemic levels.” -Chuck Rosenberg, Acting Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration, October 2015[1] Opioid abuse in the United States has been a topic of much discussion in recent years, but the problem continues to grow. Since 1999, the number of opioid-related overdose deaths has quadrupled.[2] In a … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene on Monday, June 12 at 4:00 pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 5:00 pm. At 5:00 pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to consider the nomination of Kenneth P. Rapuano, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will next convene at 3:00 pm on Monday, June 5, 2017. On Monday, following any Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to the consideration of Calendar #107, S.Res.176, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem, with the time until 5:30 pm equally divided in the usual form. At … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until 3:00 pm today, May 22. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of Executive Calendar #55, the nomination of Terry Branstad, of Iowa, to be Ambassador to China, with the time until 5:30 pm equally divided. At 5:30 pm, the Senate will vote on confirmation … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene today, May 15, at 3:00 pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the nomination of Jeffrey Rosen, of Virginia, to be Deputy Secretary of Transportation, with the time until 5:30 pm equally divided. At 5:30 pm, the pending cloture motions will ripen and the … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene today, May 8 at 2:00 pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the nomination of Heather Wilson to be Secretary of the Air Force, with up to 4 hours of debate equally divided. Upon the use or yielding back of time, the Senate will … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until today at 3:00pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the nomination of Jay Clayton, of New York, to be Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission. At 5:30pm, the Senate will vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the Clayton nomination. House … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene at 3:00pm today, April 24. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session for consideration of Calendar #31, the nomination of Sonny Perdue to be Secretary of Agriculture. The time until 5:30pm will be equally divided. At 5:30pm, the Senate will vote on confirmation of … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until today, Monday, April 3 at 3:00 pm. Following Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to the consideration of Calendar #18, S.89, Delta Queen, with the time until 5:30 pm equally divided in the usual form. At 5:30 pm, the Senate will vote on passage of the bill. Upon … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until 3:00 pm today, March 27. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session and resume consideration of the Montenegro treaty. The filing deadline for first degree amendments to the treaty is 3:30pm. At 5:30 pm, the Senate will vote on the motion to invoke … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene at 10:30 am on Tuesday, March 21. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business for one hour, with Republicans controlling the first half and Democrats controlling the final half. After morning business, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session for the … Continue Reading
Executive Branch Activity Trump Releases FY 2018 Budget Blueprint Last week, President Donald Trump released his FY 2018 “skinny budget,” intended to serve as the blueprint for his full budget request expected in May. As anticipated, the $1.1 trillion budget request adheres to the topline discretionary spending cap of $1.1 trillion mandated by the Budget … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene at 2:00 pm today, March 13. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the nomination of Seema Verma, nominated to be Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, post-cloture; all time on the nomination will expire at 5:30pm and the Senate will vote … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity FY 2017: House Passes Defense Appropriations Bill, What About the Rest? The House passed its $577.9 billion FY 2017 defense appropriations bill (H.R. 1301) last week by a vote of 371-48 which included a $6.8 billion increase in procurement funding above the Obama Administration’s budget request for the fiscal year. The chamber still … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until today, March 6 at 2:00 pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of H.J.Res.37, disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration relating to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, with the time until … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate convenes today, February 27, at 12:00pm. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session and resume consideration of the nomination of Wilbur Ross, to be Secretary of Commerce. At 3:00pm, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) will be recognized to deliver Washington’s Farewell Address. Following the reading of Washington’s … Continue Reading
Executive Branch Activity Trump’s FY 2018 “Skinny Budget” Expected Mid-March The Trump Administration is reporting it will release its FY 2018 budget proposal by mid-March, according to White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer. The proposal is expected to be a “skinny budget” and provide an outline of the President’s fiscal goals, while a more comprehensive … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until 12:00pm today, February 13. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will enter Executive Session and resume consideration of the nomination of Steven Mnuchin to be Secretary of the Treasury. There are seven hours of post-cloture debate time remaining. Upon the use or yielding back of time, the … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate stands adjourned until 12:00pm today, February 6. Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the nomination of Betsy DeVos to be Secretary of Education. The confirmation vote on the DeVos nomination is expected on Tuesday, February 7. Procedural votes are possible tonight around 6:00pm. As a reminder, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Outlook for the 115th Congress On Tuesday, January 31, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee – led by Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) – held a brief business meeting to adopt the committee’s rules and funding resolution for the 115th Congress. Chairman Roberts announced that a separate … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity OMB Director-Nominee Rep. Mulvaney’s Confirmation Vote Moves to the Full Senate Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) is one step closer to being confirmed as President Donald Trump’s Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) after being confirmed in a party-line vote by the Senate Committee on the Budget (12-11) and the Senate … Continue Reading
Senate Legislative Activity The Senate will convene today, January 30, at 3:00pm. Following any leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 5:00pm. At 5:00pm, the Senate will proceed to Executive Session to resume consideration of Executive Calendar #2, the nomination of Rex Tillerson to be Secretary of State. There … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Agriculture Committee to Hold Organizational Meeting On Wednesday, February 1, the House Agriculture Committee will convene for a business meeting to consider, and likely adopt, measures intended to guide and organize the committee during the 115th Congress. During the committee’s formal organizational meeting, members will consider the rules, oversight plan, and staff … Continue Reading
With President Trump in the White House and Republicans in control of the House and the Senate, renewed attention is being given to the Congressional Review Act (CRA) as a tool to roll back a broad range of Obama Administration regulations. This legislative mechanism has been rarely used, but will provide an opportunity for a … Continue Reading
