The House and Senate are in session this week. The House will vote on 14 bills under suspension of the rules, including the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2019 (H.R. 2578), which extends the authorization of the NFIP by four months, through September 30, 2019; a bill (H.R. 2379) which permanently reauthorizes the Justice Department's Bulletproof Vest Partnership grant program at $30 million annually beginning in FY 2020; and the Fair Licensing Access for Governments (FLAG) Act of 2019 (H.R. 1999), which allows state and local governments
to obtain federal trademark protections for their flags, symbols, insignia and seals. For the remainder of the week, the House will vote on the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act (H.R. 312), which reaffirms the January 2016 Interior Department decision to take about 321 acres into trust to establish the Mashpee Wampanoag Reservation in Massachusetts; the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act (H.R. 987),a package of seven measures that together are designed to bring more low-cost generic drugs to the market, ban short-term insurance policies Democrats deride as "junk" plans, and restore funds for Affordable Care Act programs cut by the Trump Administration; and the Equality Act (H.R. 5), which would provide LGBT individuals with federal protections against discrimination by banning sexual orientation and gender identity bias on the job and in any place of public accommodation, including hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues, retail stores, transportation services, health-care facilities, funeral homes, and any other establishment that provides goods or services.
The Senate will consider at least five nominations this week, including: Michael Truncale to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Texas; Kenneth Lee to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit; Wendy Vitter to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana; Brian Bulatao to be an Under Secretary of State for Management; and Jeffrey Rosen to be Deputy Attorney General.
On Wednesday, three House Appropriations Subcommittees will markup the FY 2020 Defense, Energy-Water Development, and Interior-Environment Appropriations bills, respectively; the full Committee will likely vote on approving the three bills on Friday or early next week. The House Natural Resources Committee and its Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Subcommittee will hold FY 2020 budget and policy priority hearings for the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Reclamation & U.S. Geological Survey, respectively, on Wednesday and Thursday. Additionally, t
he Senate Appropriations Committee will hold FY 2020 budget hearings for the U.S. Forest Service; intelligence programs and global threat assessments administered by the Director of National Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency, and U.S. Cyber Command; and the Department of the Treasury.
On Monday, President Trump
signed Executive Order 13872 on the "Economic Empowerment of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders" and is also hosting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbรกn to "discuss ways to deepen cooperation on a range of issues, including trade, energy, and cyber security." On Tuesday, Trump will travel to Hackberry, Louisiana where he will speak at, and tour, the Cameron LNG export facility. On Wednesday, he will speak at the 38th Annual National Peace Officers' Memorial Service on the West Side of the U.S. Capitol and will host a dinner for the White House Historical Society. On Thursday, he will travel to New York City to attend the grand opening of the new Statue of Liberty Museum and on Friday he will speak at the National Association of Realtors Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo in Washington, DC.
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