Recently in Washington                   

Last week the House passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 by a vote of 315-108.  The bill authorizes funding for Department of Defense operations and funding for the war in Afghanistan.  The bill authorized $552.1 billion, which included $85.8 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO).  It passed only after the House considered 172 amendments ranging from terrorist detention and military chaplains to missile defense.  The House also passed H.R. 1256, the Swap Jurisdiction Certainty Act by a vote of 301-124.  The bill directs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC) to jointly issue rules related to certain cross-border swap transactions. Simpson supported both bills.

Simpson’s Potato Amendment Passes Committee

Amendment allows fresh potatoes to be included in WIC

The House Appropriations Committee last week passed the fiscal year 2014 Agriculture Appropriations bill.  Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson is a member of the committee and once again offered an amendment to allow states to include fresh potatoes in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Simpson’s amendment passed by voice vote.

“Fresh potatoes have been excluded from the WIC program despite their widely known nutritional value,” said Simpson. “This amendment corrects the exclusion of fresh potatoes and allows participants to make wholesome food choices for their young families.”

Potatoes are currently excluded from the WIC program despite being nutrient dense, affordable, low in calories, and free of fat, cholesterol, and sodium. A medium-sized potato contains more potassium than a banana and is a good source of dietary fiber—both of which are “nutrients of concern,” meaning those nutrients most lacking in Americans’ diets, according to USDA’s current Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 

The bill was approved by the full committee on a voice vote and now awaits consideration by the full House.

To view Congressman Simpson defending fresh potatoes in the House Appropriations Committee, visit his YouTube page.

For the text of the bill please visit:   http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/bills-113hr-sc-ap-fy2014-agriculture-subcommitteedraft.pdf and http://appropriations.house.gov/uploadedfiles/hrpt-113-hr-2014-

Floor Schedule   

MONDAY, JUNE 17TH
On Monday, the House will meet at 12:00 p.m. for morning hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 p.m.

Legislation Considered Under Suspension of the Rules:

1) H.R. 876 - Idaho Wilderness Water Resources Protection Act (Sponsored by Rep. Michael Simpson / Natural Resources Committee)

2) H.R. 253 - Y Mountain Access Enhancement Act, as amended (Sponsored by Rep. Jason Chaffetz / Natural Resources Committee)

3) H.Res. __ - To amend the Senate Amendment to H.R. 588 - Vietnam Veterans Donor Acknowledgement Act of 2013 (Sponsored by Rep. Don Young / Natural Resources Committee)

4) H.R. 520 - Buffalo Soldiers in the National Parks Study Act (Sponsored by Rep. Jackie Speier / Natural Resources Committee)

5) H.R. 674 - Rota Cultural and Natural Resources Study Act (Sponsored by Del. Gregorio Sablan / Natural Resources Committee)

6) H.R. 862 - To authorize the conveyance of two small parcels of land within the boundaries of the Coconino National Forest containing private improvements that were developed based upon the reliance of the landowners in an erroneous survey conducted in May 1960 (Sponsored by Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick / Natural Resources Committee)

TUESDAY, JUNE 18TH, AND THE BALANCE OF THE WEEK
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the House will meet at 10:00 a.m. for morning hour and 12:00 p.m. for legislative business.

On Thursday, the House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business. Last votes expected no later than 3:00 p.m.

On Friday, no votes are expected.

Legislation Considered Under Suspension of the Rules:

1) H.R. 1896 - International Child Support Recovery Improvement Act of 2013 (Sponsored by Rep. David Reichert / Ways and Means Committee)

2) H.R. 475 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to include vaccines against seasonal influenza within the definition of taxable vaccines (Sponsored by Rep. Jim Gerlach / Ways and Means Committee)

3) H.R. 1151 - To direct the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to obtain observer status for Taiwan at the triennial International Civil Aviation Organization Assembly, and for other purposes (Sponsored by Rep. Edward Royce / Foreign Services Committee)

H.R. 1797 - Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, Rules Committee Print (Subject to a Rule)
(Sponsored by Rep. Trent Franks / Judiciary Committee)

H.R. 1947 - Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013 (Subject to a Rule)
(Sponsored by Rep. Frank Lucas / Agriculture Committee)
                   
In the News 

Breast-feeding, potatoes dominate spending bill markup

More white potatoes and less money to promote breast-feeding: that was the House Appropriations Committee’s prescription Thursday for the popular WIC nutrition program for millions of low income women and their infant children.

The action came as the panel approved a $19.45 billion budget for the Agriculture Department and Food and Drug Administration which would cut almost $1.3 billion from what Congress approved in March for the same accounts.

Powerful poultry and banking interests won concessions as well, but the breast-feeding and potato votes best captured the mood.

Indeed, the chaotic, three-hour plus markup gave a little taste of the anticipated free-for-all next week as House Speaker John Boehner edges closer to bringing a much larger five year Farm Bill to the floor.

The House Rules Committee, controlled by Boehner, posted the final 629 page text after last minute revisions late Thursday. A Monday deadline has been set for members to submit what will be scores of amendments.

“There are parts of the farm bill I hope are improved on the floor of the House through an open process,” Boehner told reporters. “But I do expect that we will have a majority of Republicans voting for the farm bill.”

In Appropriations, potatoes struck first behind Rep. Mike Simpson, a boisterous, popular Idaho Republican who unashamedly promoted his state’s product and won language to make room in WIC’s fruit and vegetable package for white potatoes.

That package is a system of coupons — typically $10 a month for a mother — to encourage households to supplement their diet. White potatoes have been excluded on the grounds that beneficiaries are already consuming enough starchy vegetables.

“I love potatoes, I love Idaho and I love you. But I don’t love this amendment,” protested California Rep. Sam Farr, the Democratic manger of the bill.

The loudest lament came from Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), who was fighting her own uphill battle to save WIC funding for breast-feeding.

“There is no need to break what is working so well,” she said of the current fruit and vegetable standards, adopted in 2009 on the advice of the Institute of Medicine. Opening the door to potatoes, she said, would only invite other exceptions and become a “race to the bottom.”

The math behind the breast feeding fight begins with the committee’s decision to hold WIC financing to $6.65 billion for the coming year to meet the GOP’s lower budget targets.

That’s a modest $130 million increase above WIC’s reduced 2013 appropriation after the automatic spending cuts ordered by sequestration in March. But it is $486.7 million below what President Barack Obama requested in his 2014 budget.

Republicans argue that the White House’s numbers are based on inflated estimates which ignore the fact that WIC enrollment has been dropping with the improved economy. Obama assumes enrollment of 8.9 million in 2014, they say, while the number of beneficiaries has already dropped to 8.7 million.

Critics counter that the GOP is too bullish about the drop in costs, and in recent years Congress has a record itself of underestimating WIC costs to help meet its budgets.

In this case, the lower House appropriation appears to be based on WIC enrollment dropping as low as 8.44 million. That’s a big decline from the latest estimate of 8.7 million. And there is some anecdotal evidence that the 8.7 million figure is already artificially low because states closed WIC offices more because of sequester fears.

All this cutting comes back to the breastfeeding counseling program which rests on WIC having some flexibility in meeting its core obligations.

Begun in 2004, the annual expenditures have run around $60 million, but the House bill would only make this available once WIC’s managers have certified that they have enough money to meet their caseload.

DeLauro argued that it would be better to make that commitment up front, but her amendment to add $60 million for this purpose was rejected by Republicans on a voice vote.

Advocates of the program said the end result is double jeopardy. If there is not enough money, the program would be terminated. If it turns out there is, WIC’s managers won’t be able to release the breastfeeding money until well into fiscal 2014, forcing major disruptions.