Weekly Legislative Update
 Week of April 24, 2017
  
Congressional Outlook

Week of April 24

The House and Senate are in session this week. On Tuesday, the House will vote on 8 bills under suspension of the rules, including Senate-passed legislation (S. 496) to repeal the December 2016 final rule from the U.S. Department of Transportation that would force many local metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) in the same region to merge. For the remainder of the week, the House will vote on the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act of 2017 (H.R. 1695), which would mandate that the head of the U.S. Copyright Office be appointed by the President and subject to Senate confirmation, rather than be appointed by the Librarian of Congress; and the Fannie and Freddie Open Records Act of 2017 (H.R. 1694), which would subject Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to records requests under the Freedom of Information Act if they remain under government conservatorship or are placed in receivership.
 
The Senate will vote on the nomination of former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue to serve as the 31st U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and vote to advance the nomination of Rod J. Rosenstein to serve as Deputy Attorney General on Monday. The Senate may also vote on two House-passed Congressional Review Act (CRA) disapproval resolutions to nullify Obama Administration rules finalized between June 13, 2016 and January 20, 2017, including the Bureau of Land Management's November 2016 rule that requires that oil and gas producers implement measures and limits to intentional venting, flaring, and leakage of methane from new and existing oil and gas producers on federal lands and the Labor Department's August 2016 rule to support state efforts to establish retirement savings plans for workers who do not otherwise have access to a tax free long term savings plan.  
 
With current federal government funding set to expire at midnight on Friday, April 28, Congress only has five days to pass a government funding bill in order to avoid a shutdown on April 29. If an agreement is not reached by Friday, than the House and Senate may pass a one or two week "Continuing Resolution" (CR) to keep the government open temporarily. Among the outstanding issues Congressional Democrats and Republicans are still working on is how to handle a White House request for $33 billion in additional funds for defense and border security, as well as money for Affordable Care Act payments known as Cost Sharing Reduction (CSR) Subsidies.
 
The Trump Administration has indicated that its tax reform plan, which includes a "massive tax cut" for businesses and individuals, may be released as early as Wednesday.
Week in Review

Trump Signs "Buy American, Hire American" Executive Order
 
On April 18, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order aimed at bolstering his pledge to "buy American and hire American" by directing federal agencies to probe government procurement practices and re-examine all programs under which workers enter the United States from abroad - including H-1B visas, a key priority for tech companies. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross will coordinate an effort across all government agencies to root out weak monitoring, enforcement and compliance efforts relating to procurement practices. Ross will then advise Trump on how to close any existing loopholes in a report due in 220 days. The Order also directs the Commerce Department and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to " assess the impacts of all United States free trade agreements and the World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement on the operation of Buy American Laws, including their impacts on the implementation of domestic procurement preferences." Read more...
Trump Signs Memorandum Regarding Steel Imports
 
On April 20, President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross entitled "Steel Imports and Threats to National Security." The memo prioritizes an investigation initiated by the Secretary Ross into whether steel imports threaten to impair the national security. Secretary Ross is directed to expedite his investigation of the effects of steel imports on the national security to determine the following:
  • Whether steel imports cause American workers to lose jobs which are needed to meet security requirements of the domestic steel industry;
  • Any negative effects of steel imports on government revenue; and
  • Any harm steel imports cause to the economic welfare of the United States, recognizing the close relationship between economic prosperity and national security.
By law the investigation must be concluded and a report submitted within 270 days. If the report concludes that steel imports threaten to impair the national security, and President Trump concurs, he may take several actions, including tariffs, to eliminate the negative effects of steel imports on the national security of the United States. Read more...
Trump Signs Financial Services Executive Order and Memoranda
 
On April 21, President Trump signed an Executive Order and two Presidential Memoranda which direct Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to analyze core aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act and tax regulations issued in 2016. The Order directs Mnuchin to review "significant" tax regulations issued in 2016 and determine if any are too costly, complex or outside of an agency's authority. One memorandum directs Mnuchin to assess the Financial Stability Oversight Council's (FSOC) process of designating banks and financial firms "too big to fail." The other memorandum would direct Mnuchin to review and report back on whether the federal government's orderly liquidation authority (OLA) is useful or hurtful to the U.S. economy and in line with administration financial regulatory policy. Read more...
Trump Signs Two Bills Into Law
 
On April 18 and 19, President Trump signed the following two bills into law:  
  • H.R. 353, the "Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017," which reauthorizes and modifies the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's:  (1) weather research and forecasting programs; and (2) tsunami detection, forecast, warning, research and mitigation programs; and
  • S. 544, which eliminates the termination date of the Veterans Choice Program; to modify reimbursement and cost-recovery procedures for care provided under the Program; and to authorize the sharing of certain veterans' medical records with medical service providers outside the Department of Veterans Affairs.