Will the House complete consideration of all 12 fiscal year 2023 appropriations bills before the August recess? Will Senate appropriators keep pace with their House counterparts? What obstacles must the House and Senate overcome to complete spending bills following the mid-term elections? With the August congressional recess only weeks away, House and Senate appropriators are … Continue Reading
Are COVID-19 economic stimulus negotiations between the Trump Administration and Congressional Democrats hopelessly deadlocked? Will the US experience a government shutdown prior to the November election? What steps will Congress take to address these issues in September?… Continue Reading
How has COVID-19 altered the US federal appropriations process? What steps is Congress taking to adopt must-pass fiscal year 2021 spending bills? Will the United States experience another government shutdown this year? Attention in Congress will soon turn to the annual appropriations process and passage of fiscal year 2021 spending bills. In addition to funding … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Markups on Appropriations Bills Begin in the House this Week with FY2018 MilCon-VA Bill; House Republican Members Push for an Omnibus Before August Recess Appropriations subcommittees in the House will commence FY 2018 spending bill markups this week, with the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs (MilCon-VA) subcommittee markup scheduled for this evening. Still … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Armed Services Committee Introduces “By Request” NDAA Bill On June 7, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-TX) and Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-WA) introduced H.R. 2810, the “by request” version of the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This procedural measure is traditionally the first step in the legislative process … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity With a Passing Glance at the President’s Request, Congress Continues Work on FY 2018 Appropriations President Trump’s FY 2018 budget request, which was released on May 23, was received in Congress with reservation by Democrats and Republicans alike. The $4.09 trillion federal budget request, entitled “A New Foundation for American Greatness,” proposes cutting … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity President Trump’s FY 2018 budget This week brings the long-anticipated full details of President Trump’s FY 2018 budget, which is expected to be released on Tuesday. The Administration’s “skinny budget” released in March indicated the potential for large cuts to several agencies amounting to a $54 billion reduction in domestic spending. The budget … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Appropriators Turn Attention to FY 2018 Process Without the Guidance of a Budget Resolution Now that the FY 2017 budget is finalized, appropriators are ready to focus on the FY 2018 process, even though the budget committees have yet to produce a budget resolution to provide topline spending levels for the upcoming fiscal … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity On Sunday night, an agreement for a fiscal year 2017 Omnibus bill had been reached. Although the text was not available at the time of posting, it is expected to be released in short order. Last week, as anticipated, a Continuing Resolution (CR) was enacted to allow for additional time to iron out … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity “Buy American” Provisions Could Impact Pentagon Former Defense officials are concerned that tightening “Buy American” provisions might affect the Pentagon’s ability to procure the best technology, following President Donald Trump’s April 18 Executive Order (EO) calling for an expansive review of existing federal procurement programs to increase government procurement of U.S.-made products. During a … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Budget Reconciliation and FY 17 Appropriations The House FY 17 budget reconciliation measure- the American Health Care Act, aimed at “repeal and replace” of the Affordable Care Act- did not receive a floor vote last week, and its future is now uncertain. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said the House Republican party “will need … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Administration Transmits FY 2017 Supplemental Funding Request to Congress This week, the Trump Administration provided Congress with its supplemental appropriations request for the remainder of FY 2017. The supplemental requests an additional $3 billion in funds for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including funds for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) infrastructure and border … Continue Reading
Regulatory Activity D.C. Circuit Rules 2-1 to Uphold FCC Net Neutrality Rules On June 14, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (D.C. Circuit) in a 2-1 decision upheld the FCC’s “net neutrality” rules applicable to providers of broadband Internet access service (BIAS), which were released in a March 12, 2015 Report and … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Lawmakers Continue Focus on TSA Wait Times, While House Spending Panel Approves TSA Funding for FY 2017 The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security approved its draft FY 2017 appropriations measure on Thursday, June 9, including $7.6 billion for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), $163 million more than in FY 2016 and $21.8 … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Debate Over Growing TSA Lines Continues Lawmakers maintained their focus on growing airport security lines, as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) continues to grapple with the growing number of summer travelers. Congressman Mike McCaul (R-TX), Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and several colleagues are preparing legislation aimed at easing the bottlenecks, including … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Lawmakers Approve Reallocated Funds for TSA House appropriators followed on their Senate colleagues and approved reallocated funds for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to address growing screening lines over the summer. Rep. John Carter (R-Texas), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, indicated that agency heads have already cautioned that they may … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Look Ahead: FY 2017 Appropriations Lawmakers are currently debating their priorities for FY 2017, including funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and related agencies. President Obama’s FY 2017 budget request includes a proposed $908.8 million increase in the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) fees by raising airline passenger fees by $1 per … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Agriculture Committee Votes to Reauthorize CFTC Following a Senate Appropriations hearing last week to review the FY17 Budget Requests for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), on Thursday, April 14, the Senate Agriculture Committee voted 11-9, to reauthorize the CFTC. Though the timing of Senate … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity “Corporate Integration” Proposal Delayed As the House Ways and Means Committee continues moving forward with its international tax reform proposal, last week the Senate Finance Committee indicated that its “corporate integration” proposal has been delayed. The proposal, which would lower the effective rate for corporations by eliminating a double layer of taxation, is … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Judiciary Committee to Hold Hearing on EB-5 Target Employment Areas **NOTE: The Senate Judiciary Committee has since postponed this hearing. We will update this post to reflect the new date/time once confirmed.** This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold its second hearing of the year examining the EB-5 Regional Center Program. … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senior Senate Democrat Criticizes Cuts to State/Local Homeland Security Program Shortly after President Obama unveiled his FY 2017 budget request, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) highlighted significant cuts proposed to the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI). UASI funds provide state and local authorities with financial assistance for the prevention, mitigation, response to, and recovery from … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Appropriations Committee Passes Bill That Would Decrease FCC’s Budget On Thursday, July 23, the Senate Committee on Appropriations (Senate Appropriations Committee) approved the Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16) Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Bill (Appropriations Bill). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would receive $320 million, a cut of $20 million (roughly 6%) … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Homeland Security IG Testifies Before Congressional Committee On Tuesday, June 9, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General John Roth testified before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee regarding oversight of the Transportation Secretary Administration (TSA). Mr. Roth’s testimony comes just as TSA continues to address the results of covert … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity FCC Commissioners Testify in Senate Appropriations Hearing on FCC’s Budget On May 12, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler and Commissioner Ajit Pai testified before the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Appropriations in a hearing concerning the FCC’s Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16). The … Continue Reading
