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DC Download 02.05.2024

House Republicans are considering a resolution to impeach the Secretary of Homeland Security — the first time a cabinet member would be impeached in almost 150 years. At the same time, they may also consider a resolution to censure a House Democrat and a standalone bill to aid Israel. Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of Senators reached a deal on immigration and emergency assistance that the chamber is expected to begin considering this week.

Table of Contents:

What’s on Congress’ To-Do List? Must-Pass Bills in 2024

The Progressive Caucus Action Fund recently released an explainer, What’s on Congress’ To-Do List? Must-Pass Bills in 2024, which describes must-pass bills Congress will likely consider in 2024, based on statements from congressional leaders and historical precedent. This essential document highlights major priorities on Congress’ legislative agenda, like appropriations, the National Defense Authorization Act, the Farm bill, and more. This guide is a crucial resource for understanding impactful legislation on deck this year and the pivotal discussions and decisions ahead. You can check out the explainer here.

To learn more about what makes a bill “must-pass” and how members of Congress have used must-pass bills to advance their priorities, check out Understanding Must-Pass Bills.

House Floor

The House will vote on nine suspension bills from the Committees on Natural Resources and Education & the Workforce. Suspension bills require a ⅔ majority to pass. For a list of all suspension bills being considered, click here.

The House will also consider the following bills, subject to a rule:

H. Res. 863– Impeaching Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors, as amended ( Sponsored by Rep. Greene (GA) / Homeland Security Committee): The resolution impeaches Secretary of Homeland Security Mayorkas for what House Republicans allege are high crimes and misdemeanors, including his handling of issues involving fentanyl and border security. If passed, this would be the first time a cabinet secretary has been impeached since 1876.

H.R. 485– Protecting Health Care for All Patients Act of 2023 (Sponsored by Rep. Rodgers (WA) / Energy and Commerce Committee): The bill would prohibit federal health programs from using cost-effectiveness measurements that assess medical treatments’ value.

Throwing The Baby Out With The Bath Water: Congress Considers Banning The QALY (Forbes)

The House may also consider the following legislation:

H. Res. __ – Censuring Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota ( Sponsored by Rep. Greene (GA) / Ethics Committee): The resolution would censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) for “openly admitting her efforts to advance Somalia’s interests using her position” as a U.S. representative during a Jan. 27 event in Minneapolis—allegations based on mistranslated remarks. The resolution would also remove Rep. Omar from the House Committees on Education & the Workforce and House Budget.

Marjorie Taylor Greene Wants to Censure Ilhan Omar Over Words She Didn’t Say (Intelligencer)

H.R. __ – Making emergency supplemental appropriations to respond to the attacks in Israel for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2024, and for other purposes ( Sponsored by Rep. Calvert / Appropriations Committee): The bill would provide $17.6 billion for military assistance to Israel and support for U.S. troops in the region. The measure includes $9.7 billion to reinforce Israeli defenses, $4.4 billion to replenish defense articles and services provided to Israel, and $3.3 billion for current U.S. military operations in the region.

White House calls House GOP’s $17.6B Israel aid bill a ‘cynical political maneuver’ (The Hill)

House Committee Highlights

A full list of this week’s hearings and markups can be found here. Notable hearings and markups include:

Tuesday Hearings

The State of American Aviation and the Federal Aviation Administration (Transportation & Infrastructure)

Federal Science Agencies and the Promise of AI in Driving Scientific Discoveries (Science, Space, & Technology)

Hearing on the Weaponization of the Federal Government (Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government)

Hearing on Examining Chronic Drug Shortages in the United States (Ways & Means)

Politics Over People: How Biden’s LNG Export Ban Threatens America’s Energy and Economic Security (Energy & Commerce)

Protecting Missing and Exploited Children (Education & the Workforce)

Protecting American Health Security: Oversight of Shortcomings in the FDA's Foreign Drug Inspection Program (Energy & Commerce)

Wednesday Hearings

Advancing America's Interests at the World Trade Organization's 13th Ministerial Meeting (Ways & Means)

American Confidence in Elections: Confronting Zuckerbucks, Private Funding of Election Administration (House Administration)

Nominations

The Senate this week has teed up votes on the following nominees:

Kurt Campbell, of the District of Columbia, to be Deputy Secretary of State
Amy M. Baggio, of Oregon, to be United States District Judge for the District of Oregon

Senate Committee Highlights

A full list of this week’s Senate committee hearings, including confirmation hearings, can be found here. Notable committee hearings include:

Tuesday Hearings

Foreign influence in the United States: Reviewing Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey & Company, M. Klein and Company, and Teneo’s Compliance with Congressional Subpoenas (Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs)

Thursday Hearings

Hearing to Examine the Administration’s Pause on LNG Export Approvals and the Department of Energy’s Process for Assessing LNG Export Applications (Energy & Natural Resources)

Artificial Intelligence and Health Care: Promise and Pitfalls (Finance)

Why Does the United States Pay, by Far, the Highest Prices in the World for Prescription Drugs? (HELP)

Emergency Security Package and Border Deal

On Sunday, a bipartisan group of Senators released an emergency security package that would aid Ukraine and Israel and overhaul the U.S. immigration system. The agreement, totaling around $118 billion, would provide $60 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel, $4.8 billion for the Indo-Pacific, and $10 billion for humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, and other conflict zones. The deal also includes $650 million for border wall construction, $4 billion to hire new asylum officers, and funds to provide counsel for unaccompanied children. It also overhauls the U.S. immigration and asylum process by, among other things:

Introducing a new emergency authority to shut down the border if Border Patrol encounters a specific number of migrants
Raising the credible fear standard during interviews for claims, making it harder for migrants to claim asylum
Requiring asylum seekers be processed within 90 days at the cost of due process
Ending so-called "catch and release," mandating detention for migrants or their deportation
Allowing migrants who pass initial screenings to work in the U.S. while awaiting claim adjudication
Providing 50,000 new employment and family-based visas per year for five years.

Following its release, President Joe Biden came out in support of the agreement and called on Congress to “swiftly pass” the deal. However, it is unclear if the bill has the 60 votes necessary to pass the Senate, which is expected to begin considering the bill this week. House Speaker Mike Johnson called it “dead on arrival” should it reach the house, while House Republican Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise said the bill “will NOT receive a vote.”

Bill Summary (Senate Appropriations)
Senate supplemental funding bill is an affront to refugee protection (NIJC)
Negotiators release $118 billion border bill as Trump presses GOP to tank it (NPR)
Senators unveil bipartisan bill to impose tougher asylum and border laws (NBC News)
Bipartisan Senate group releases text of Ukraine-immigration agreement (Independent)

SALT Tax Bill

Last week, the House passed a $78 billion bipartisan tax package that, among other things, would temporarily expand the child tax credit and restore a number of business tax benefits. The bill, however, did not act on state and local tax deductions (SALT), which allow taxpayers to deduct taxes paid to state and local governments from their federal taxable income. Prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017, there was no limit to the amount of SALT deductions that taxpayers could claim. However, the TCJA introduced a cap on the SALT deduction, limiting it to $10,000 through 2025. Now, a Republican-backed bill aims to double the limit to $20,000. Last week, the House Rules Committee approved H.R. 7160, the SALT Marriage Penalty Elimination Act, which could see a floor vote as early as this week. However, it is unclear whether the bill has sufficient support to pass. Support and opposition to the bill varies depending more heavily on Members’ geography than party affiliation.

LNG Pause

Last month, the White House announced a temporary pause on exports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to countries without free trade agreements. According to the White House, the current economic and environmental review that the Department of Energy (DOE) uses to support LNG export authorizations is no longer adequate and should be updated. The pause will be in effect until DOE has conducted a public interest determination, which includes an analysis of climate change impacts and harms to frontline communities. Following the announcement, Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl Grijalva called the decision a “major victory for those environmental justice communities.” However, some lawmakers are taking aim at the Biden Administration's pause. Both the Republican-led House Energy & Commerce Committee and the Democratic-led Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee are holding hearings this week to examine the decision. Additionally, legislation has been introduced to shift the authority to approve LNG exports from the DOE to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and it is expected to be considered this month.

Biden Administration Pauses Approvals of New Gas Export Terminals (The New York Times)
What to Know About Biden’s Move to Pause New LNG Export Terminals (Time)
DOE Puts People First: LNG Exports Paused Pending Review (NRDC)

SCOTUS Watch: Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC

On October 10, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC, a case about whistleblower retaliation. The plaintiff, Trevor Murray, sued his previous employer, UBS Securities, after he was fired for reporting that he had been pressured to skew his research for the company’s benefit in violation of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations. His lawsuit relies on a provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that prohibits publicly-traded companies from retaliating against employees who report violations of federal securities laws and regulations. UBS Securities contends that Murray failed to prove that the company acted with retaliatory intent when he was fired. If the Court sides with UBS Securities, it could make it more difficult for whistleblowers who claim retaliation to sue their employers.