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Author: Sarah Castro

Reviewed 9/22

Shut Down Looms, Senate Fails to Get Cloture

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This afternoon, the Senate failed to get the 60 votes necessary to invoke cloture, or limit debate, on the expected legislative vehicle for a 10-week continuing resolution (CR). The measure funds the government until December 9th as well as includes emergency spending to combat the Zika virus; $500 million in flood relief for Louisiana and other states; and full-year appropriations for military construction and veterans programs, among other contents.  Without cloture, the Senate cannot move forward procedurally with a stopgap needed to keep the government funded past Friday September 30.

Senate Democrats overwhelmingly voted against the measure because it contains no funds for Flint, MI to repair its lead-contaminated water system. Top Senate Democrats said they would not settle for a commitment from Republicans to include the money during a conference committee consideration of a water resources bill that has passed the Senate and is being considered in the House this week.

Following the vote, Senate Republicans said they are weighing the possibility of dropping flood relief for Louisiana and other states from the package in order to meet Democratic demands and avoid a government shutdown at the end of the week. 

On the House side, House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) stated that the House will “have a response” if the Senate’s procedural vote on the continuing resolution is rejected this afternoon. In addition, on Monday night the House Rules Committee advanced a rule for a water resources authorization bill that includes language providing “same-day authority” through September 30 to speed consideration of a CR. The Rules Committee last week had already granted same-day authority, otherwise known as “martial law,” through Tuesday. 

House and Senate Lawmakers will now have to head back to the negotiating table and hash out a deal palatable enough to garner 60 votes in the Senate that would also pass through the House before Friday at midnight. 

What We’re Reading This Week, September 19 – 23

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Here’s a selection of articles the Federal Relations team is enjoying this week.

Not So Credible Any More – On Thursday, the Education Department  moved to shut down the nation’s largest accreditor of for-profit colleges, which had stood watch as failing institutions like Corinthian Colleges and ITT Technical Institute teetered on a pileup of fraud investigations. The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools — known as ACICS — is one of a few dozen different organizations charged with maintaining standards and quality at the country’s more than 5,400 higher education institutions. Read more in The New York Times. 

Contemplation of Justice (AOC)
Contemplation of Justice (AOC)

Police Brutality – Since the August 2014 police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, police in America have been under heightened scrutiny. The Black Lives Matter protests in particular have shined a light on what many see as a systemic emphasis on excessive use of force by police, particularly on racial and ethnic minorities. Vox has 9 things you should know about US police and shootings. 

Charlotte and Candidates – Charlotte experiences continued unrest from Keith Scott’s killing. As polls in North Carolina are in a dead heat, both nominees seized on the fatal shooting in ways meant to appeal to core supporters. Read more in The New York Times. 

This Really Happened – Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-NC), a white American male born in 1948, the lawmaker says he understands the motivations of young, African American protesters better than they do. When speaking about Charlotte, he said to BBC Newsmaker “They hate white people, because white people are successful and they’re not.” Read about it and see it at The Washington Post.

Maybe It’s Not So Bad – Clinton has had one of the worst months yet, but this maybe the best thing for her campaign. Read more in Politico. 

Winning Where It Counts – Polls may be tightening, but Clinton is winning in states where she needs to, and where the electoral college votes are. Read more at the 538.

President Trump – Looking at Trump’s campaign shows a glimpse of what at Trump Presidency would be like. Read more in The New Yorker. 

Trump Ed Plan – Speaking in Chester Township, PA this week Trump said that under his administration, universities would have to lower tuition and student debt if they want federal tax breaks. Watch it at The Washington Post. 

College, Yes. Degree, No – More Americans are attending college than ever before — nearly 90 percent of millennials who graduate from high school attend college within eight years. But a far smaller proportion of Americans actually have a college degree: only 40 percent of students complete a bachelor’s degree in four years and 60 percent graduate in six years. At two-year colleges, 29 percent of students graduate in three years. Read more at Inside Higher Education. 

Sleeping Beast – Oklahoma is actually full of fault lines — over 900, but the recent boom in oil fracking has made the infrequently moving faults very active.. Before 2008, Oklahoma had maybe a couple of earthquakes of magnitude 3 or greater each year. Read more at the 538. 

Now What? – In a unique-to-DC job hazard, what do you do if your boss loses in the primary? Read more in Roll Call.

Leaf Peepers – We’ve just passed the autumnal equinox, which means several things, including Fall is nearly here! That means colored leaves! How can you determine peak fall foliage? There’s now an interactive map for that. See it at Smokymoutains.com.

You can now see your Patronus, thank you Pottermore. 

Senate GOP Releases CR

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After scheduling but not voting to debate the Continuing Resolution (CR) measure on Tuesday, the Senate Republicans finally unveiled the measure today and voted to proceed today.  In a bit of political maneuvering, the Senate just adopted by voice vote the motion to proceed and consider the underlying vehicle for the nine week CR (HR 5325, the FY 2017 Military Construction bill).  Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) then offered a substitute as well as a cloture motion, amid a rising tide of disagreement among Republicans and Democrats. Senators will have four days to review the text of the Republican-written CR.

Senate negotiators continue to seek an agreement on a stopgap funding bill that would also include a Zika response and full FY 2017 funding for military construction and veterans but negotiations between Senate Republicans an Democrats have been and continue to be contentious.

Republicans insist that the CR is “clean” or free of many of the riders that have bogged down negotiations thus far, such as Senator Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) efforts to prevent the US from turning control of certain internet properties to the UN. That said, the measure would still include emergency funding for flood relief in Louisiana, as well as West Virginia and Maryland and includes Zika funding.

In releasing the bill, Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD)said on the floor that Democrats will oppose the Republican’s substitute, the Republican majority’s first public text of a continuing resolution filed in the Senate.

Despite having text, this process is still a long way from being finished.

 

 

 

Long Weekend Negotiating for Unclear Week Ahead

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Negotiations to craft a 10-week continuing resolution (CR) continued throughout the weekend as Congressional Leadership worked to nail down an agreement ahead of a Monday night procedural vote in the Senate. At 5:30 pm tonight, the Senate is scheduled to take a procedural vote, a cloture vote, intended to move forward with the package. It should be noted that Senate Leadership announced and planned on having a vote on this package last week, before it became clear a final bill was not yet reached.

While Republicans and Democrats are getting close to an agreement, sticking points remain with the package. Those issues include:

  • language within a Zika virus response package related to Planned Parenthood services in Puerto Rico,
  • offsets for the new $1.1 billion for anti-Zika spending, and what those offsets would be, if at all, from the $750 million in offsets from the Zika conference report;
  • provisions within the Zika legislation related to pesticide spraying should be exempt from the Clean Water Act;
  • including emergency flood relief for Louisiana and how much, which has been complicated by a Democratic push to pair flood money with aid for Flint, MI; and
  • and unrelated policy riders dealing with the Export-Import Bank, a federal transfer of certain internet oversight functions and more.

As a reminder, Congress has until September 30 to pass the continuing resolution and avert a partial government shutdown when FY 2016 funding expires. The FY 2017 measure is expected to adhere to FY 2016 spending levels and run through December 9, one week before Congress is scheduled to adjourn for the December holidays.

The Senate is expected to use the FY 2017 Legislative Branch appropriations bill (HR 5325), which previously passed the House, as a vehicle for the CR.  The spending package is also expected to include full-year FY 2017 appropriations for veterans programs and military construction projects.

If the measure passes on Monday, expect the Senate to recess until after the election Thursday or Friday. If the Senate passes and leaves, that forces the House into a take it or leave it position with the CR that the Senate passes, meaning pass the Senate bill or shut down the federal government just before an election. And shutting down the government was not very popular last time it happened. 

Keep in mind, this fight will continue next year and play into a larger spending argument, as the nation’s debt limit will be reached in March of next year. The battle could begin as early as March, when the current suspension of any debt limit — negotiated as part of a bipartisan budget deal last year — is set to expire. But Congress could punt the decision for several more months, because of the Treasury’s ability to use financial mechanisms to continue borrowing past the March 15 deadline into the fall.