Recently in Washington

Recently the House passed H.R. 3585, the Solar Technology Roadmap Act, as well as H.R. 3619, the Coat Guard Authorization Act of 2010.

House Expected to Pass Bipartisan Legislation to Ease Unnecessary Regulations on Small Businesses
The House of Representatives passed H.R. 3763, bipartisan legislation introduced by Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson, Congressman John Adler (D-NJ), and Congressman Paul Broun (R-GA), to help protect small businesses and small health care practices from overreaching federal regulations. The bill will exempt certain small businesses from the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) burdensome Red Flags Regulation, which would force them to develop and implement an unnecessary identity theft program. 

“It is obvious that physicians and dentists are not creditors, and they should not be forced to spend hundreds of dollars to comply with this needless regulation.  They don’t require full payment at the time of service because they first bill the insurance company, then they bill the patient for the remainder.  This system should not be treated the same as a loan with a financial institution,” said Congressman Simpson. “Health care is expensive enough; we don’t need to create needless rules to increase costs even more.”

This bipartisan legislation amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to provide for an exclusion from Red Flags guidelines for health care practices and law and accounting firms with 20 or fewer employees. In addition, it would create a system where the FTC has some flexibility to waive implementation of the regulations for other industries.

“Small businesses are the backbone of New Jersey’s economy,” said Congressman Adler, a member of the House Financial Services Committee. “During these tough economic times, the federal government should not be placing new burdensome regulations on these hard-working entrepreneurs. I am committed to helping small businesses thrive.”
 
“During these tough economic times, Congress should be assisting small businesses and health care providers instead of tying their hands with more costly bureaucratic red tape,” said Congressman Paul Broun, M.D.  “I want to thank Congressmen John Adler and Mike Simpson for working in a quick and bipartisan manner before the November 1st deadline to help small businesses avoid the burdensome red flag compliance rule at a time when they are trying to stay financially afloat.”

Background:
The Federal Trade Commission went beyond the intent of Congress by considering non-financial services-related industries to be “creditors” under the FAIR and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003. Its ruling would force thousands of small businesses to comply with burdensome, expensive regulations by forcing them to develop and implement an identity theft program.

The bipartisan Adler/Simpson/Broun bill will exempt certain health care practices and law and accounting firms from the FTC’s red flag guidelines.  In addition, it would create a system where the FTC has some flexibility to waive implementation of the regulations for other industries.  The House passed the bill by a vote of 400-0. If legislation to exempt small businesses is not signed into law, the regulation will go into effect on November 1.

Idaho Delegation: Post Bills Online Before Votes
Earlier this year Congress faced some tough choices. It was clear the economy was headed in a dangerous direction, and the country faced financial challenges not seen in generations. Action was required to prevent another Great Depression.

There was a lot of debate about the right course to take. Some wanted aggressive action by the federal government; others felt that limited and strategic government action was warranted. Still, others supported a combination of tax relief and incentives to motivate the private sector to act on its own.

The debate was critical because it helped the public learn about the slipping economy; the public, in turn, helped inform the debate by providing feedback to Senators and Representatives. That process should have continued after bills were introduced, so the people most affected by the slipping economy and by proposed deficit spending – the public – would have say in the final proposal.

Unfortunately, the public did not get as much opportunity to weigh in on the final bill. The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act – the stimulus bill – was formally introduced just hours before the first vote in Congress.

Regardless of your position on that bill or any others over the last ten years, it simply isn’t right to write legislation without giving the public – let alone members of Congress – the ability to read it first. It’s not good government, and it’s not the way this country should make public policy. Most importantly, it’s not the way Idahoans want government to work.

As your elected Senators and Representatives, we have a responsibility to represent Idaho values in Washington, D.C. At our regular delegation meetings, we always search for the right approach for our state, without worrying about what’s best for ourselves or our political parties.

That’s what Idahoans have come to expect from their elected officials: to seek consensus, to reach out to the people who put us into office and solicit their input. When we take the time to listen to the people we represent, our work is better. In fact, the work of both Houses of Congress would better reflect the wishes of the country if the public was able to better track the legislative process.

This is critically important for the upcoming votes on health care. Throughout Idaho over the summer, it was clear that you were informed about the various proposals before Congress. The efforts at town meetings demonstrated that Americans want to read and understand the bills. It’s imperative to know how the proposals will affect our families, but time is needed to delve more deeply into the actual legislation without relying on broad talking points and media sound bites. You need sufficient time to review the language and the financial analysis.

With technology now available, it’s easy for such information to be made available. That is we strongly support efforts to require Congress to post bills online no less than 72 hours before a vote so the public can have an opportunity to read, review and provide feedback. We have all supported various efforts to move efforts along to provide bill language on the Internet, as well as efforts to force a vote by Congress on those measures.

We will continue advocating for these policies and will continue to seek more ways for you to be better engaged and informed on the issues before the U.S. Congress. That’s part of the job you hired each of us to do.

House Legislative Business This Week 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2009
On Monday, the House will meet at 12:30 p.m. for Morning Hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business with votes postponed until 6:30 p.m.

Suspensions (9 Bills):

1. H.R. 2489 - AmericaView Geospatial Imagery Mapping Program Act (Sponsored by Rep. Herseth Sandlin / Natural Resources Committee)
2. H.R. 1471 - To expand the boundary of the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site in the State of Georgia, to redesignate the unit as a National Historical Park, and for other purposes. (Sponsored by Rep. Bishop (GA) / Natural Resources Committee)
3. H.R. 2806 - To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to adjust the boundary of the Stephen Mather Wilderness and the North Cascades National Park in order to allow the rebuilding of a road outside of the floodplain while ensuring that there is no net loss of acreage to the Park or the Wilderness (Sponsored by Rep. Hastings (WA) / Natural Resources Committee)
4. H.R. 1641 - Cascadia Marine Trail Study Act (Sponsored by Rep. Inslee / Natural Resources Committee)
5. H.Res. 854 - Recognizing Weber State University for the 120th anniversary of its founding as an institution of higher education (Sponsored by Rep. Bishop (UT) / Education and Labor Committee)
6. H.Res. 368 - Congratulating the University of Iowa Hawkeyes wrestling team on winning the 2009 NCAA Division I National Wrestling Championships (Sponsored by Rep. Loebsack / Education and Labor Committee)
7. H.Res. 562 - Congratulating Syracuse University for winning the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Men's Lacrosse Tournament (Sponsored by Rep. Maffei / Education and Labor Committee)
8. H.Res. 824 - Congratulating the Northwestern University Wildcats on winning the 2009 NCAA women's lacrosse championship, and to commend Northwestern University for its pursuit of athletic and academic excellence (Sponsored by Rep. Schakowsky / Education and Labor Committee)
9. H.Res. 817 - Supporting the goals and ideals of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month and expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should continue to raise awareness of domestic violence in the United States and its devastating effects on families and communities, and support programs designed to end domestic violence (Sponsored by Rep. Al Green / Education and Labor Committee)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2009 AND THE BALANCE OF THE WEEK
On Tuesday, the House will meet at 10:30 a.m. for morning hour debate and 12:00 p.m. for legislative business.

On Wednesday and Thursday, the House will meet at 10:00 a.m. for legislative business.

On Friday, the House will meet at 9:00 a.m. for legislative business.

Suspensions (10 Bills):

1. H.Res. 790 - Supporting the goals and ideals of a national day of remembrance on October 30, 2009, for American nuclear weapons program workers and uranium miners, millers, and haulers (Sponsored by Rep. Berkley / Oversight and Government Reform Committee)
2. H.Res. 568 - Recognizing the 150th anniversary of John Brown's raid in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (Sponsored by Rep. Capito / Oversight and Government Reform Committee)
3. H.Res. 783 - Recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month and celebrating the vast contributions of Hispanic Americans to the strength and culture of the United States (Sponsored by Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart / Oversight and Government Reform Committee)
4. H.R. 3632 - Federal Judiciary Administrative Improvements Act of 2009 (Sponsored by Rep. Johnson (GA) / Judiciary Committee)
5. H.Con.Res. 177 - Raising the awareness of the need for crime prevention in communities across the country and expressing support for designation of October 1, 2009, through October 3, 2009, as "Celebrate Safe Communities" Week, and October as "Crime Prevention Month"  (Sponsored by Rep. Reichert / Judiciary Committee)
6. H.Res. 838 - Welcoming to the United States and to Washington, DC, His All Holiness Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, Ecumenical Patriarch on his upcoming trip on October 20, 2009, through November 6, 2009 (Sponsored by Rep. Bilirakis / Foreign Affairs Committee)
7. H.Res. 784 - Honoring the 2560th anniversary of the birth of Confucius and recognizing his invaluable contributions to philosophy and social and political thought (Sponsored by Rep. Al Green / Foreign Affairs Committee)
8. S.Con.Res. 45 - A concurrent resolution encouraging the Government of Iran to allow Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd to reunite with their families in the United States as soon as possible (Sponsored by Sen. Specter / Foreign Affairs Committee)
9. H.Res. 787 - Expressing support for designation of October 13, 2009, as National Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day (Sponsored by Rep. DeLauro / Energy and Commerce Committee)
10. H.Res. 831 - Supporting the goals and ideals of National Adoption Day and National Adoption Month by promoting national awareness of adoption and the children in foster care awaiting families, celebrating children and families involved in adoption, recognizing current programs and efforts designed to promote adoption, and encouraging people in the United States to seek improved safety, permanency, and well-being for all children (Sponsored by Rep. Brown-Waite / Ways and Means Committee)

H.R. 3854 - Small Business Financing and Investment Act of 2009 (Subject to a Rule) (Sponsored by Rep. Schrader / Small Business Committee)

Conference Report on H.R. 2996 - Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 (Subject to a Rule) (Sponsored by Rep. Dicks / Appropriations Committee)

H.J.Res. __ - Making Continuing Appropriations for the Fiscal Year 2010, and for other purposes (Sponsored by Rep. Obey / Appropriations Committee)

In the News

Stopgap measure might hitch a ride on Interior spending bill
By Humberto Sanchez CongressDaily October 23, 2009, http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1009/102309cdam1.htm 

A continuing resolution being drafted by the House Appropriations Committee would keep the federal government running likely through Dec. 15 and could be included as part of the fiscal 2010 Interior-Environment Appropriations conference report.

House and Senate negotiators working to finalize the Interior-Environment measure were given the word Thursday to conclude talks.

"We are trying to wrap things up," said House Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Norman Dicks, D-Wash., adding discussions on including the CR were ongoing. The House could name conferees as soon as Friday.

House Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, said conferees are reasonably close and should not have too much trouble finishing.

One issue remaining is whether the EPA may regulate emissions of ships operating on the Great Lakes, Simpson said.

Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said she also has heard CR might hitch a ride.

"At the chairman's meeting [Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.] mentioned that they might well do that," Feinstein said. "We'll see. It's a possibility."

She said she would have no objection to the move. "It has to go somewhere, so it's not a problem from that perspective," Feinstein said.

Reid said late Thursday evening the Senate would consider next week the CR, Commerce-Justice-Science bill and the Military Construction-VA bill.

The Senate last month approved a $32.1 billion, fiscal 2010 Interior-Environment bill, while the House in June approved a $32.3 billion measure.

Congress will need to clear the CR by next week because the current funding extension expires at the end of the month.

House and Senate negotiators are also working on reconciling differences between their versions of the fiscal 2010 Defense bill and the fiscal 2010 Transportation-HUD measure.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Thursday Senate Democratic leaders are considering including an increase in the debt limit in the fiscal 2010 Defense bill, a boost above the increase to $13 trillion approved by the House as part of the fiscal 2010 budget resolution.

"I talked to them briefly about it, that is why I know it is a possibility," Hoyer said, adding, "We'll have to see what the Senate does and then we'll respond to it."

Senate Democratic leaders could choose to boost the debt ceiling by enough to avoid having to deal with it before the November election next year.

Under the increase adopted by the House as part of the fiscal 2010 budget resolution, another increase would be needed sometime next summer, said House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt, D-S.C.

"Really, the call lies with the Senate," Spratt said.

Meanwhile, members are increasingly talking about having to wrap up the appropriations process in an omnibus.

Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said Thursday GOP cooperation will likely be the deciding factor and he hopes Democratic leaders can avoid an omnibus. "I think [an omnibus] would be shame; we've got to get cooperation from Republicans," Dorgan said.

Dan Friedman contributed to this report.