Legislative Activity Democrats Continue to Push for a Budget Deal The President and Democrats in the House and Senate continue to pressure Republicans for a budget deal to replace the sequester’s strict spending limits. Most House Democrats voted against the two sequester-level appropriations bills that were recently considered on the House floor, President Obama has … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House and Senate Nearing Budget Conference Agreement House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) included possible consideration of the budget conference report on this week’s House schedule, and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Michael Enzi (R-WY) said he is optimistic the House and Senate budget conferees can come to an agreement this week, noting he … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House and Senate Budget Conference The House and Senate budget conference committee will hold a public conference meeting on Monday, as they attempt to negotiate a joint agreement on a fiscal 2016 budget resolution that can pass both houses of Congress. Most of the Committee’s upcoming negotiations will take place in private, and … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House and Senate Budget Conference The House and Senate Budget Committees are working towards a budget resolution that will pass both the House and the Senate. The Budget Committee Chairmen, Representative Tom Price (R-GA) and Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY), returned early from the two-week recess to discuss the budget resolutions, as they try … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Appropriations Season About to Begin Congress returns from a two-week recess this week, with work on twelve appropriations bills set to begin very soon. Last week, House Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers (R-KY) announced vice chairmen for each of the panel’s subcommittees. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), chair of the Defense Subcommittee, will also serve … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House and Senate Budget Resolutions Heading to the Floor for Debate The House and Senate Budget Committees have reported their respective budget resolutions out of committee, and the House and Senate will bring those resolutions to the floor this week. Both committees have seen defense hawks and fiscal conservatives at odds over the … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House and Senate Committees to Mark Up Budget Resolutions; How Will Congress Deal with the Sequester? The House and Senate Budget Committees will hold markup hearings this week on their respective Budget Resolutions. The House Committee will mark up its resolution on Wednesday, while the Senate Committee will hold markup hearings on both … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Congress Avoids DHS Shut-Down, Passes Short-Term Funding Measure Funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will again be the top priority on the congressional agenda this week after both a “clean” full-year continuing resolution (CR) and a three-week CR failed to advance in the House, forcing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity DHS Funding Deadline Nears Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding expires on Friday, February 27, leaving only days for Congress to act to fund DHS. The Senate has not been able to overcome a Democratic filibuster of the House DHS funding legislation (H.R. 240), which includes policy riders blocking the President’s executive actions … Continue Reading
Regulatory Activity Clean Water Proposed Rule The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) has announced a proposed rule that would allow “changes to pollutant analysis methods that are used by industries and municipalities to analyze the chemical, physical, and biological components of wastewater and other environmental samples that are required by regulations under the Clean Water Act.” … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Previewing the President’s FY 2016 Budget The Administration will release the President’s FY 2016 budget later today, Monday, February 2. Federal agencies will host briefings to outline the President’s priorities and provide background on the proposed budget numbers. Congressional budget committees will then kick-off a series of hearings on these proposals starting Tuesday, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Budget Season Approaches The White House is expected to release the President’s FY 2016 budget on Monday, February 2, a plan that would meet the mandated deadline for the first time in five years. Following the President’s January 20 State of the Union remarks, White House officials reportedly said that his FY 2016 … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity DHS Spending Bill Slated for Consideration by House Late on Friday, January 9, House Republicans released a draft bill funding the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through September 30, the end of the fiscal year. DHS is currently operating under a short-term continuing resolution passed as part of the Consolidated and Further … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity 114th Congress Prepares for Busy Appropriations and Budget Season Legislators are gearing up for a busy agenda at the start of the 114th Congress, including several key appropriations and budget priorities. On December 16, 2014, President Obama signed the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act (also known as the “CRomnibus”). The CRomnibus funds … Continue Reading
