Both the House and Senate will be in session this
week.
Senate Democrats are continuing their efforts this week to pursue
options to advance voting rights legislation ahead of midterm
elections in the fall. President Biden and Democratic leaders are
hoping to convince Republicans to allow them to pass laws that
would push back against state-level efforts to limit absentee
balloting and tighten identification requirements or change the
rules in the Senate to allow them to bypass a GOP filibuster. Two
of those bills include the Freedom to Vote Act, which would make
Election Day a public holiday, require states to allow same-day
voter registration, and guarantee that all voters can request
mail-in ballots, and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act,
which extends federal "preclearance" of voter laws in
states with a history of discrimination. Democrats have been
lobbying the moderates in their party – particularly Sens.
Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) and Joe Manchin (WV) – who support voting
rights reform but have been hesitant to roll back the chamber's
filibuster rules.
House appropriators will also meet this week to examine the effects
of stopgap funding measures on the Department of Defense as
government funding negotiations have stalled and the possibility of
a full-year continuing resolution weighs on discussions. Lawmakers
have already had to rely on two stopgaps to avoid shutdowns in
order to fund the government from October 1, 2021 through the
current deadline, February 18.
It is unlikely that there will be any movement on the Build Back
Better Act, the Democrats' $1.75 trillion tax and spending
package, as it continues to evade any consensus in the upper
chamber and appears stalled for the time being.
Administration
On Tuesday, President Biden and Vice President Harris will travel
to Georgia to pay homage to the state's civil rights history in
an attempt to build support among the public for voting rights
legislation, even if the Senate has to modify the chamber's
filibuster rules.
House Side
On Monday, the House will meet to establish a quorum in the House
of Representatives for the Second Session of the 117th
Congress.
Tuesday – Thursday, the House will meet for legislative
business.
- Bills expected under a rule
- House Amendment to Senate Amendment to H.R. 5746 – NASA Enhanced Use Leasing Extension Act of 2021 (Rep. Beyer – Science, Space, and Technology), which would extend NASA's authority to lease some property and equipment to the private sector and other agencies.
- H.R. 1836 – Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2021 (Rep. Mike Levin – Veterans' Affairs). The legislation would allow National Guard and Reserve members to count time spent in training toward their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
Senate Side
On Monday, the Senate will vote on the motion to invoke cloture, or
limit debate, on the nomination of Alan Davidson to be Commerce
Department assistant secretary for communications and information.
Additional votes on nominations are expected this week.
Friday is the deadline for a vote on Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-TX)
bill (S. 3436) that would impose sanctions on the
Nord Stream 2 pipeline across the Baltic Sea. Cruz secured the vote
as part of an agreement that allowed several of President
Biden's nominations to move forward before the Senate left for
the holidays.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.