Legislative Activity House Financial Services Committee Chooses CHOICE Act as President Trump Signs Financial Services Executive Orders After a two-week recess, the House Financial Services Committee is wasting no time getting back to work as it plans to hold a hearing on the Financial CHOICE Act this Wednesday. The bill, an acronym standing for Creating … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Brady May Be Open to “Significant Modifications” on BAT as the Trump Administration Takes More Active Role in the Tax Reform Debate As the health care reform debate continues to unfold, congressional tax-writers are preparing to move forward swiftly with their tax reform efforts. Though House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) has … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Time for Tax Reform? With the GOP’s healthcare reform efforts having fallen apart, Members and staff from the House Ways and Means Committee will likely now turn their full time and attention to another key priority: tax reform. See our analysis of the current landscape here. This Week’s Hearings: On Tuesday, March 28, the House … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity President Trump Orders Review of Financial Regulations Last Friday, February 3, President Trump issued an Executive Order related to financial services regulatory reform (generally) and an Executive Memorandum specifically targeting the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Fiduciary Rule. The Executive Order on Core Principles for Regulating the United States Financial System directs the Secretary … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Lawmakers Call for Sequestration Repeal Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, has enlisted other lawmakers in urging House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) to repeal Pentagon spending limits mandated by the 2011 Budget Control Act. Twenty-four Republicans have signed on to the letter, which seeks a floor … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate to Approve Chao Nomination This Week On Tuesday, the Senate will vote on the Honorable Elaine Chao’s nomination to serve as Transportation Secretary. Secretary-designate Chao is expected to face little opposition in the Senate and should be confirmed easily. For additional information on Ms. Chao and her nomination hearing in the Senate … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Confirmation Hearing for OMB Director Nominee On Tuesday, January 24, the Senate Committee on the Budget and the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs will hold confirmation hearings for President Donald Trump’s nominee for Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC). It is anticipated that … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Banking Committee Set to Vote on Carson Nomination This Tuesday, January 24, the Senate Banking Committee is set to vote on the nomination of Dr. Ben Carson to be Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Two weeks ago, Dr. Carson received a fairly warm welcome from both Democrats … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Border Adjustability in the Spotlight Though healthcare and repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act have thus far been the primary focus of the tax-writing committees this Congress, policymakers are still continuing to move forward with tax reform. Among the proposals in the House Republicans’ tax reform “Blueprint” receiving the most attention in recent weeks … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate May Approve Chao Nomination This Week While Nominee-designate Elaine Chao was not included in the two cabinet members approved by the Senate on Friday (Defense Secretary James Mattis and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly were confirmed), but Ms. Chao may be confirmed this week. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chairman John … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Cabinet Confirmation Hearings This week, the Senate will be busy holding confirmation hearings for at least seven of President-Elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees. The president-elect’s choice for Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), however, has yet to be named. As history has shown, it is not unusual for the agriculture secretary … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Panels Prepare for Trump Cabinet Confirmation Hearings This week, Senate lawmakers will begin a number of hearings to consider President-Elect Trump’s Cabinet nominees. On Wednesday, January 11, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hold a hearing to consider the nomination of Gen. John Kelly to be Secretary of the … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Commerce Committee to Hold Chao Nomination Hearing The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee will hold a nomination hearing for Transportation Secretary-designate Elaine Chao. In addition to serving as the Secretary of Labor under President George W. Bush, she served as Deputy Secretary at US DOT under President George H. W. Bush, … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading
Congressional Activity Congress, NHTSA, and Outside Organizations Continue to Evaluate DOT’s Automated Vehicles Policy Congress continues its oversight of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Automated Vehicles policy, and a House Committee Roundtable is scheduled for this Tuesday, December 6. Many Members of Congress have lauded the expected benefits of automated vehicles on the economy and … Continue Reading
Regulatory Activity Obama Administration DOT to Continue Issuing Regulations The Obama Administration’s Department of Transportation (DOT) is expected to continue issuing regulations until President-Elect Donald Trump takes office in January. Over the final two months of the Administration, DOT is expected to issue regulations banning cellphone calls on flights and requiring freight trains to use … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Is Dodd-Frank on the Chopping Block Next Congress? With President-Elect Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans in control of both the House and Senate, we believe there is a real possibility for a significant overhaul of financial services regulation in the 115th Congress – especially if future Chairman of the Senate … Continue Reading
