Skip to content
News and updates

Author: jnurse

This Week on Capitol Hill, March 15-19

Posted on

The House may take up the Senate-passed health care overhaul (HR 3590) bill this week as part of a two-step strategy to complete the legislation.  The House schedule also includes:

  • a number of lands and government operations bills, including HR 1769, Washington rivers protection;
  • bills to simplify language in government documents;
  • to put Congressional Budget Office estimates in a separate section of the Congressional Record;
  • HR 4825, to require lawmakers to return unused allowances for deficit or debt reduction; and
  • HR 1586, FAA reauthorization..

 The Senate considers HR 2847, a package of tax breaks and programs intended to create jobs. The chamber may clear the measure for the president’s signature this week.  Later in the week, the Senate is likely to take up a bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration, with a long list of amendments pending.

 Markups

  • House Budget marks up a draft reconciliation bill for a health care overhaul. House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology marks up a draft bill to authorize science and technology programs.
  • Senate Judiciary marks up bills on consumer pricing agreements ( S 148 ), refugees’ residency status ( S 2960 ), immigrants’ right to return ( S 2974 ), medical bankruptcy ( S 1624 ) and hate crimes against the homeless ( S 1765 ); also votes on pending nominations. 10 a.m. Thursday, 226 Dirksen

 Hearing Highlights

  • House Appropriations hearing on the fiscal 2011 budget, with White House budget director Peter R. Orszag and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner
  • House Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on fiscal 2011 funding for the Justice Department, with Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.
  • Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions hearing on reauthorizing the education act known as No Child Left Behind, with Education Secretary Arne Duncan
  • Senate Special Aging hearing on rising drug prices and Medicare Part D
  • House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on fiscal 2011 funding for the Education Department, with Secretary Arne Duncan
  • House Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on fiscal 2011 funding for the Interior Department, with Secretary Ken Salazar

 Source: CQ Today Online News

Seen in DC

Posted on

Since the end of November when the last “Seen in DC” article was posted, the Federal Relations office in DC has been extremely busy working with UW faculty, staff, and student leaders to facilitate advocacy meetings with the Washington congressional delegation.   This is, however, not unusual for this time of year; winter has traditionally been very busy in DC since it is the time when professional associations meet and encourage their members to meet with Congressional and Senate representatives on funding issues. Continue reading “Seen in DC”

Congressman Dicks Officially Selected to Chair Defense Appropriations

Posted on

The House Democratic Caucus officially selected Norm Dicks (D-WA) to become chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee yesterday, filling the vacancy left by John P. Murtha who passed away in February. Congressman James Moran (D-VA) will replace Norm Dicks as chairman of the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee. Congressman Dicks will remain a member of the Interior Appropriations subcommittee. In the coming days there will be an appointment of a new member to the full Appropriations Committee to fill Congressman Murtha’s seat, as well as some shuffling of Appropriations subcommittee assignments.

This Week on Capitol Hill, March 8-12

Posted on

Action on the Floor

This week the Senate continues consideration of a bill to extend expired tax provisions, unemployment insurance, flood insurance, and COBRA health care subsidies.

On Tuesday the House will consider a number of minor commemorative resolutions.  Later in the week, they will consider measures to encourage debt relief for Haiti, to expedite tax breaks for eqrthquake relief in Chile, and to set a timeline for withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan.  the house is also expencted to vote to impeach Judge G. Thomas Porteous Jr.

Hearing Highlights

  • Tuesday:  The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions will hold a hearing on reauthorizing the “No Child Left Behind” education law.
  • Wednesday:  Senate Foreign Relations will hole a hearing on global health programs with philanthropist Bill Gates.

Source:  CQ Today

Health Insurance and Student Aid Overhauls Likely Headed for Reconciliation

Posted on

Yesterday, during a speech at the White House, President Obama called on Congress to give health care reform an up or down vote before the Easter congressional recess -beginning March 29th. The message seemed to make clear that the President, along with Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid, intend to pursue passage of health insurance reform through the budget reconciliation process. The process forward would have the House pass the Senate’s version of health reform without changes, sending the legislation to the President for signature. Changes to the Senate’s bill would be done through a separate piece of legislation advanced through the budget reconciliation process, avoiding a filibuster, as only a simple majority vote is required.

House and Senate Democratic leaders are working to finalize a reconciliation bill as early as this week. The reconciliation bill would then need to be scored by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). As the reconciliation bill is scored by CBO, Democratic leaders will be working with members of their own caucus to gain consensus on a variety of health care issues and working with the Senate Parliamentarian to figure out which provisions can be included in the reconciliation bill since Senate rules prohibit “extraneous matters” from consideration. The reconciliation bill is seen as key to coaxing some House Democrats to vote in favor of the Senate’s bill, which is opposed by some liberal and conservative Democrats.

Since the Congress can only do one reconciliation bill for fiscal year 2010, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) would have to advance along with healthcare, be passed through the normal legislative process, or be deferred until a future date. At present, the votes do not exist in the Senate to advance SAFRA through the normal legislative process. As a result, if it is to happen this year, the reconciliation process is the only possible vehicle. The Senate has yet to reveal its own version of SAFRA. However, the legislation is likely to emerge in the next few weeks, and move rapidly in order to meet the Easter deadline set by the President.

Pell grant recipients interested in providing a testimonial to the Senate on the program’s impact are invited to contact Jonathan Nurse (jnurse@uw.edu).

President Obama’s Health Insurance Reform Plan (Updated 2/22)