Executive and LEGISLATIVE Branch ACTIVITY Syria Last week, the Russian Government acted on Secretary of State John Kerry’s Monday, September 9 suggestion that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could avert a U.S. strike if he were to turn over all chemical weapon stockpiles to international control. President Assad said he would accept the Russian four-point plan … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY Infrastructure Bank Legislation Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) is expected to introduce an infrastructure bank bill during the week of September 16 that is similar to the 2011 “BUILD Act,” which proposed a $10 billion fund to leverage private investment in large infrastructure projects. Warner’s bill is likely to propose some changes to the … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Premium Subsidy Bill House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) will continue to drive legislation to undermine elements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and advance “patient-centered systems” when Congress returns to session. The strategy will continue to unfold this fall and kicks off with the House taking up H.R. 2775 this week, a … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Cybersecurity Legislation Last week, Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman John Rockefeller (D-WV) and Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) introduced the Cybersecurity Act of 2013 (S. 1353) and also held a hearing related to the legislation. The bill would give authority to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates Last week, the Senate passed its student loan interest rate compromise bill by an 81-18 vote. As previously noted, this proposal would peg interest rates to the 10-year Treasury note, plus 2.05 percent for both the subsidized and unsubsidized portions of the undergraduate loans, plus 3.6 percent for graduate … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senators Submit Tax Reform Letters to Finance Committee; Promised 50 Year Secrecy on Tax Expenditure Submissions Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking Member Orrin Hatch (R-UT) asked their Senate colleagues on June 27 to provide proposals in response to a “blank-slate” approach (i.e., assuming elimination of all tax expenditures from … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Egypt The State Department continues to call for an end to perceived arbitrary arrests in Egypt. Despite reported calls in Egypt by Islamists and the opposition for U.S. Ambassador Ann Patterson to leave Cairo, the State Department maintains its support for the embattled veteran Foreign Service officer. Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates A bipartisan group of senators, led Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), announced another agreement on student loan interest rates last week. The deal, which represents a new scheme that shifts to market-driven variable interest rates, was announced after Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) ultimately agreed to support it. According to reports, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity WRDA Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH), Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, indicated last week that a draft of a House Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) is nearly complete and that he hopes to go to markup after August recess. Expedited Permitting Legislation Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Egypt Last week, the Obama Administration dealt with possible U.S. legal ramifications connected to the Egyptian military’s intervention on July 3 that led to the removal of Mohamed Morsi as the President of Egypt, specifically whether the intervention should be classified as a coup d’état. President Obama encouraged all political, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Secretary of Homeland Security Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano announced last Friday that she will be stepping down from her position to become the next president of the University of California system. She will continue to serve as Secretary until early September during which time President Obama will nominate her replacement. Immigration … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Mandate Votes Following the U.S. Treasury’s announcement of a one-year delay in the Affordable Care Act employer responsibility requirements, House leadership plans to hold two votes this week to repeal both the employer and individual mandates for one year (H.R. 2667 and H.R. 2668). The move would force House Democrats to go … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates The agreement reached on a student loan interest rate package last week has been disrupted after a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score estimated a $22 billion (over 10 years) cost to the proposal. A bipartisan group consisting of Democratic Senators Joe Manchin (WV), Tom Carper (DE), and Dick Durbin … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Defense Budget Last week, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel sent a letter to the Senate Armed Services Committee in which he “strongly” opposed the $52 billion sequester cuts to the Defense Department’s FY 2014 Budget. He particularly cited risks to U.S. military readiness and technological superiority. Secretary Hagel noted the adverse effects … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Syria Leaders at the G-8 Summit last week reiterated their support for a political solution to the Syrian civil war and for the transitional government plan agreed to last year in Geneva. The G-8 Leaders Communiqué condemned the use of chemical weapons in Syria, but it did not identify the … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Full Time Employee Bill Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Sen. Joe Donnelly (R-IN) introduced a bill that would change the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) definition of a full-time worker to someone who works 40 hours a week, up from 30 hours, titled the “Forty Hours is Full Time Act of 2013.” The Senators also … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Administration Nominations to be Considered this Week On Thursday, June 27, the Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing to consider several of President Obama’s nominations, including Rep. Mel Watt (D-NC) to be Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA); Kara Stein and Mike Piwowar to be Commissioners at the Securities and … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Reform Senators continue to work on a bipartisan deal to address federally subsidized student loan interest rates, which expire July 1. The long-term deal, which is expected to (1) peg the rates to the 10-year Treasury bill, (2) include a consolidated rate cap – something Democrats have called “non-negotiable,” and (3) … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Syria Last week, the United Nations confirmed nearly 93,000 deaths in Syria since the start of hostilities there. On Tuesday, June 18, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission will hold a briefing on the human rights and internally displaced persons situation in Syria. Last week, the Syrian opposition continued losing … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Funding Options for Reauthorization Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said last week that she plans to reveal potential funding options for the Highway Trust Fund soon. Sen. Boxer supports maintaining a user-fee system for surface transportation programs saying to the Transportation Construction Coalition last Tuesday, … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Syria Austria said it is pulling its troops out of the United Nations (U.N.) peacekeeping mission to Syria after increased battles between Syrian troops and rebels in the Golan Heights. The White House condemned the Assad regime’s assault on the city of Qusayr, noting the attack has killed “untold numbers … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) filed cloture on the motion to proceed to debate on the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act (S. 744) last Thursday, and the Senate will vote on the motion on Tuesday, June 11. Majority Leader Reid plans to allow an open amendment process and up … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates Last week, the Senate held votes on two competing measures to address federally subsidized student loan interest rates, which expire July 1. Both measures failed to garner the 60 votes needed for passage, setting up likely bipartisan negotiations this and next week to work on a compromise bill before … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Syria During last week’s Congressional recess, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) slipped over the Turkish border into Syria to meet with the leaders of the Free Syrian Army. Syrian opposition leaders reportedly called on the United States to increase its support by providing heavy weapons, instituting a no-fly zone and employing … Continue Reading
