Federal Legislative Update - Week of November 13th, 2023
Congressional
Outlook
Congress is back in session this week, with the House and the Senate returning today. The federal government will shut down on Saturday, November 18 at 12:01 am, absent congressional passage of another short-term spending bill. While prospects of a government shutdown are low, the House and Senate must work quickly to ensure the government remains funded.
On Saturday, the House Republican majority, led by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), introduced their version of a stopgap spending measure. Speaker Johnson will likely place the legislation on the House floor for a vote on Tuesday. The Furthering Continuing Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 2024 (H.R. 6363) features a two-step “laddered CR,” which includes two separate funding deadlines, Friday, January 19, 2024 and Friday, February 2, 2024. The laddered CR would extend funding through Jan. 19 for federal agencies covered by the following four appropriations bills: Agriculture-FDA, Energy and Water, Military Construction-VA, and Transportation-HUD. The other eight spending bills would receive an extension of funding through Feb. 2. The spending measure would also extend expiring 2018 Farm Bill programs for one year, through September 30, 2024, while the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) would be extended through Feb. 2 and other expiring health programs would be extended through Jan. 19 and/or Feb. 2. The package does not include the Biden Administration’s emergency supplemental funding requests from October, including $106 billion for Israel, Ukraine, and the U.S.-Mexico border. Speaker Johnson has told members of the House Republican Conference that if the “laddered CR” fails, the chamber would move to pass a 1-year CR.
The House may also vote later this week on the chamber’s version of the FY 2024 Labor-HHS-Education (H.R. 5894), Commerce-Justice-Science (H.R. 5893), and Transportation-HUD (H.R. 4820) spending bills. However, the House was supposed to consider and vote on its FY24 Transportation-HUD and Financial Services-General Government spending bills last week, but withdrew them from floor consideration when it became clear that there was not the votes needed to pass each of them. A similar dynamic may occur again with the three aforementioned FY24 spending bills.
The Senate is working on a stopgap funding plan of its own that would keep the government funded until Jan. 19. Many expect the legislation to drop elements of the supplemental funding request as details shifted over the weekend. Democrats and Republicans in the upper chamber are tying border security and immigration provisions to Ukraine aid. Without having worked out the details, the Senate is likely to hold off on adding in the funds to allow more time to negotiate over details of the package. The Senate’s version of the short-term spending bill would most likely include several extensions, including the Farm Bill, NFIP, and health care programs. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has a motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the Removing Extraneous Loopholes Insuring Every Veteran Emergency (RELIEVE) Act (H.R. 815), which would serve as the legislative vehicle for the Senate’s version of the CR. The Senate will also vote to confirm Ana de Alba to be a U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit.
The House version of the stopgap funding bill includes an extension of the Farm Bill through Sept. 30, 2024. Democratic and Republican negotiators Senate Agriculture Committee Leaders Debbie Stabenow (D- Mich.) and John Boozman (R- Ark.) issued a joint statement with House Ag Committee Leaders Glenn “GT” Thompson (R- Pa.) and David Scott (D- Ga.) about the deal that would provide funding to all 20 farm bill programs set to lapse in the coming year. The leaders of the respective House and Senate Agriculture Committees are committed to “passing a 5-year Farm Bill.” Speaker Johnson is facing pushback from members within his party over the proposed one-year extension.
Along with a vote on the CR, the House will consider nine suspension bills, including votes on the Debbie Smith Act of 2023 (H.R. 1105), which provides law enforcement agencies and crime labs across the country with the resources they need to help improve DNA collection and analysis, eliminate the rape kit backlog, and enhance state and local prosecutors' capacity. The House may also take up a House Resolution impeaching Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors; House Democrats are expected to force a tabling of consideration of this impeachment resolution to prevent a vote from taking place.
For the remainder of the week, the House will hold several hearings, including an Energy and Commerce Subcommittee hearing on “Clean Power Plan 2.0: EPA’s Effort to Jeopardize Reliable and Affordable Energy for States;” a Natural Resources Subcommittee legislative hearing on “H.R. 5770 (Rep. Neguse), “Water Data Improvement Act.” The Senate will also hold several hearings, including an Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee hearing on “Innovation in American Agriculture: Leveraging Technology and Artificial Intelligence;” an Environment & Public Works Subcommittee hearing on “Challenges and Opportunities to Facilitate Wildlife Movement and Improve Migration Corridors;” an Environment & Public Works Committee hearing on “Opportunities in Industrial Decarbonization: Delivering Benefits for the Economy and the Climate;” and a Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Subcommittee hearing on “Examining Federal COVID-era Spending and Preventing Future Fraud.” Additionally, Representative-elect Gabe Amo will be sworn in on Monday evening after winning the Rhode Island 1st Congressional District special election last Tuesday. Amo made history by becoming the first black candidate in Rhode Island elected to Congress.
Bills and Regulations of Interest to You
Bill
Title
Sponsors
Background
Think DIFFERENTLY About Emergencies Act
Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY-19)
Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to establish a last acre program.
Building Safer Streets Act
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA)
Provides for consideration of all modes of transportation and all road users in certain highway and transit programs.
One Door to Work Act
Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT-4)
Amends the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to establish a State innovation demonstration authority.
Recidivism Reduction Transparency Act
Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH-11)
Modify the report requirements under the Adult and Juvenile Offender State and Local Reentry Demonstration Projects grant.
Farm to School Act
Rep. Chris Pappas (D-VI-At Large)
Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to reauthorize the farm to school program.
Payer State Transparency Act
Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL-11)
Assesses the State by State impact of Federal taxation and spending.
National Coordination on Adaptation and Resilience for Security (NCARS) Act
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL-27) & Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE)
Requires the Federal Government to produce a national adaptation and resilience strategy.
Public Housing for the 21st Century Act
Rep. Rashida Talib (D-MI-12)
Requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to identify and make available information regarding best practices utilizing mixed-income, publicly owned housing to increase the supply of affordable housing.
Peer Support Services Center of Excellence Act
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME)
Amends the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize and expand technical assistance and support for recovery community organizations and peer support networks.
Agency
Title
Proposed Regulation
Comment Deadline
FTA / DOT
Programmatic Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Transit Projects
The guidance provides a framework for agencies to consider the effects of a proposed action on climate change, as indicated by its estimated GHG emissions. It also advises agencies to assess the effects of climate change on their proposed actions.
November 24, 2023
NIST
Preventing the Improper Use of CHIPS Act Funding
Implement conditions in the Act that seek to prevent funding provided through the program from being used to directly or indirectly benefit foreign countries of concern.
November 24, 2023
OMB
The change would establish new agency requirements in areas of AI governance, innovation, and risk management, and would direct agencies to adopt specific minimum risk management practices for uses of AI that impact the rights and safety of the public.
December 5, 2023
HHS
Revision of HHS National Environmental Policy Act
HHS is proposing a revision to its floodplain management procedures to include climate science if an action takes place in a floodplain.
December 6, 2023
OSTP
Development of a Federal Environmental Justice Science, Data, and Research Plan
OSTP seeks information to assist in developing a coordinated Federal strategy to identify and address gaps in science, data, and research related to environmental justice. Information received through this RFI will inform the biennial Environmental Justice Science, Data, and Research Plan.
December 12, 2023
HUD
Expansion and Proposed Restructuring of the Digital Opportunity Demonstration Program
HUD solicits comment on the expansion and restructuring of its demonstration program (ConnectHomeUSA) that is designed to further the collaborative efforts by government, industry, and nonprofit organizations to accelerate broadband internet adoption and use in HUD-assisted homes.
December 18, 2023
DOI
The Orphaned Wells Program Office (OWPO) invites public comment to help inform its efforts in determining how to best structure the Regulatory Improvement Grant (RIG) program, pursuant to section 40601 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
December 19, 2023
FTA
Transit Worker Hours of Service and Fatigue Risk Management
The FTA is considering proposing minimum safety standards to provide protections for transit workers to obtain adequate rest thereby reducing the risk of fatigue-related safety incidents.
December 29, 2023
DOT
Transportation Services for Individuals With Disabilities
DOT is considering whether to amend the accessibility requirements for transportation facilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) currently contained in Appendix A to DOT's regulations governing transportation services for individuals with disabilities.
January 5, 2024
NSF
National Ocean Biodiversity Strategy
National Science and Technology Council Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (SOST), requests input from all interested parties to inform the development of a National Ocean Biodiversity Strategy (Strategy), covering the genetic lineages, species, habitats, and ecosystems of United States (U.S.) ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes waters.
February 28, 2024