The House convened at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, April 26th (first votes at 6:30 p.m.) and adjourned at 9:16 p.m. on Thursday, April 29th (last vote at 6:55 p.m.), registering 22 votes for the week.
Current Balance of the House : 254 Democrats, 177 Republicans and 4 vacancies (GA-9, NY-29, HI-1, PA-12)
Rule Bills
4/28/10
H.R. 5013- Implementing Management for Performance and Related Reforms to Obtain Value in Every Acquisition (IMPROVE) Act of 2010 Introduced by Congressman Robert Andrews (D-NJ).
Passed 417-3 (Voting Yes- 247 D’s & 170 R’s : Voting No- 0 D’s & 3 R’s)
Summary: H.R. 5013- Aims to reform the Department of Defense's acquisition process for goods and services (non-weapons spending). From pallets of toilet paper to IT contracts, goods and services make up approximately 80 percent of Pentagon spending. Numerous examples of waste, fraud, and improper payments led to this bill, which tasks the Pentagon with creating performance standards that would incentivize workers to remain on time and budget and take work away from contractors that do not. Also gives Pentagon until 2017 to produce auditable financial records. Supporters argue this bill would save $27 billion a year, but this could not be confirmed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). CBO did estimate that the cost of implementing the bill would be $250 million through FY 2015.
Next step: The Senate is unlikely to take this up as a stand-alone measure. However, both the House and Senate are expected to include provisions of this policy in their respective Defense Authorization measures. The Obama Administration supports this bill.
4/29/10
H.R. 2499- The Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2010 Introduced by Representative Pedro Pierluisi Robert Andrews (D-Puerto Rico).
Passed 223-169-1 (Voting Yes- 184 D’s & 39 R’s : Voting No- 40 D’s & 129 R’s : Voting Present 1 D & 0 R's)
Summary: Authorizes a federally-sanctioned vote on Puerto Rico's political status. The vote would ask whether Puerto Ricans wish to maintain or change their current status (U.S. Commonwealth). If they vote to maintain the question would be up again in 8 years. If they vote to change, a second vote would follow where Puerto Ricans could pick from Statehood, Independence, Free Association, or Commonwealth. The result would be non-binding, with Congress having to act to make any change to Puerto Rico's political status.
Puerto Rico History at a glance:
1898: U.S. acquires control of Puerto Rico from Spain at the end of the Spanish American War.
1917: Congress grants Puerto Ricans U.S. citizenship.
1952: Puerto Rico officially becomes a U.S. Commonwealth.
Opponents of the bill argued that this bill was a backdoor way to Statehood for Puerto Rico. In the last vote (1998), the majority of Puerto Ricans chose "none of the above" but this would not be an option under H.R. 2499. They also raised concerns over the fact that Spanish is the predominant language spoken in Puerto Rico. Finally, as the 51st state, Puerto Rico is estimated to be eligible for 6 seats in the House possibly at the expense of other states' seats.
Supporters maintain that the measure is non-binding and simply grants the 4 million citizens of Puerto Rico (U.S. citizens) a say in their future. The last election was 12 years ago and Puerto Ricans should have another chance to express themselves. Puerto Rico would pay for the election(s).
CBO ruled this measure "would have no significant impact on the federal budget". However, should Puerto Rico become the 51st state, its residents would become eligible for certain federal spending and welfare programs that would likely raise federal spending.
Next Step: The Senate is scheduled to hold a hearing on this issue, but its chances for passage in this already overburdened chamber seem dim.
Suspensions
Generally reserved for non-controversial measures, legislation can be passed under Suspension of the Rules by 2/3’s of those present and voting.
This week, the House suspended the rules to pass six pieces of legislation: Named 2 Post Offices, celebrated the life of Sam Houston, supporting National Principals Week, Rural Housing Stabilization Act and BLOCKING MEMBERS' PAY RAISE FOR 2011 Click here for vote tallies (Roll Call votes 221-226).
Other Big News
President Obama's March 31st announcement to expand offshore drilling is being reexamined in the wake of the April 20th explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico which has led to a massive oil spill (approximately 5,000 barrels a day) that could persist for 3 months. Oil exploration and nuclear energy development were being floated to gather bipartisan support for a climate bill.
In an about-face from last week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he will move climate change legislation ahead of immigration. Debate on Arizona's new immigration law continued to heat up as nationwide immigration rallies took place on May 1st. This back and forth will continue and it would seem that the Senate will move on whichever policy they can obtain the sufficient number of votes on first.
Also in the Senate, the Financial Reform bill is moving forward. Debate could take up to 2 weeks.
Finally, in security news a "crude" car bomb was found in the heart of Times Square in New York.
The People's House Politics Extra
With 184 days until Election Day 2010, the question is not will Republicans gain seats in the house, but rather, will they win the 41 seats necessary to take back the House?
Minority Leader John Boehner made headlines this week when he said that "at least 100" seats are in play for Republicans to take. However, some Republicans are making the argument that it would be better politically (read 2012) for R's to come up just short of taking back the House. Another wildcard that should have both parties VERY concerned is the strongest anti-incumbent sentiment since 1994, with less than one-third of voters suggesting they will support their incumbent.
Finally, the month of May brings 2 special election contests to replace vacancies in the House. Both seats were previously held by Democrats, but the latest polling shows R's in the lead.
May 18: Race to replace the late Congressman John Murtha in Pennsylvania-12.
May 22: Winner takes all, mail in special election in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District.
Next week in the People's House
H.R. 5019, The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010 introduced by Congressman Peter Welch (D-VT).
Quick Summary: Establishes a new rebate program to incentivize homeowners who make energy efficient renovations. The bill would authorize $6 billion for the new program.
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