Feb 15, 2014
In this episode, Jen and Joe recap all the bills that passed the House of Representatives and were covered on Congressional Dish in 2013. Also, an update on the debt ceiling.
Music in This Episode: Intro and Exit Music: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito, In Your Name by The Undercover Hippy,
Debt Ceiling See how your representative voted on S. 540, the bill that suspends the debt ceiling until March 16, 2015, which passed the House on February 11 and the Senate on February 12. If we don't suspend the debt ceiling, we probably will not default on our debt as doing so would be unconstitutional. However, the only way that we would avoid a default would involve a scenario along the lines of the one described by Jeffrey Dorfman in Forbes, which involved slashing the Federal government and even eliminating whole departments. The debt ceiling either needs to be raised or suspended or the government drastically slashed by February 27. Bills Covered by Congressional Dish in 2013 (In Chronological Order) H.Res.5: House Rules for the 113th (Agreed to 1/3/13) Highlighted in episode CD010: House (Finally!) Votes on Sandy Aid
- Members can take private jets using government money (CD016)
- Speaker John Boehner promised we would have at least 72 hours to read bills, but this promise wasn't put in the official House rules.
(112th Congress) H.R. 8: The Fiscal Cliff Bill (Passed House & Senate 1/1, LAW 1/2) Highlighted in episode CD009: What's in the Fiscal Cliff Bill
- Extended unemployment insurance
- Extended Farm bill until September 2013
- Extended the Bush tax cuts
- Increased capital gains taxes from 15% to 20%
- Extended the college and child tax credits
- Multinationals -including banks- don't have to pay taxes on income from foreign subsidiaries
H.R. 152: Funded Hurricane Sandy
relief (Passed House 1/15, Senate
1/28, LAW 1/29)
Highlighted in
episode CD010: House (Finally!) Votes on
Sandy Aid
- Sandy was on 10/29/12, funding for the recovery was finally provided on 1/15/13
- All Reps from Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas voted against it
H.R. 307: Prepares for Biological Attacks (Passed Senate 2/27, House 3/4, LAW 3/13) Highlighted in episode CD011: No Budget, Still Get Paid
- Loosened the definition of an "emergency" to include "threat justifying emergency authorized use" of unapproved medical devices
H.R. 325: "The No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013" (Passed House 1/23, Senate 1/31, LAW 2/4) Highlighted in episode CD011: No Budget, Still Get Paid
- Suspended the debt ceiling until May 18, 2013
- House & Senate both have to pass budgets by April 15, 2013 (which they did).
- Would have paid Congress no matter whether or not they passed their budgets; they would have been back paid.
H.R. 225: Pediatric Research (Passed House 2/4) Highlighted in episode CD013: Surveillance, Stupidity, and Drones
- Public & private non-profits need to help CDC with surveillance systems in order to get pediatric research grants but provided no money.
H. R. 444: "Require A Plan Act" (Passed House 2/6) Highlighted in episode CD013: Surveillance, Stupidity, and Drones
- President would have to submit a second budget if his first budget wasn't balanced.
H.R. 235: Helping Veterans Become Emergency Medical Technicians (Passed House 2/12) Highlighted in episode CD014: Marching Towards Sequester
- Gives grants to States to streamline requirements for veteran EMTs to become civilian EMTs
H.R. 592: Gave Hurricane Sandy Money to Repair Churches (Passed House 2/13) Highlighted in episode CD014: Marching Towards Sequester
- The first amendment to the Constitution prohibits direct funding of religious buildings
[caption id="attachment_419" align="alignright"
width="150"]
A small conduit hydro-electric project[/caption]
H.R. 267: Fast Tracks Hydro-Power
Projects (Passed House 2/13, Senate
8/1, LAW 8/9) Highlighted in episode
CD014: Marching Towards
Sequester
- Fast tracks hydro-power projects on existing dams.
H.R. 273: Eliminates Federal Workers' First COLA in 3 Years (Passed House 2/15) Highlighted in episode CD014: Marching Towards Sequester S. 47: Violence Against Women Act Re-authorization (Passed Senate 2/12, House 2/28, LAW 3/7) Highlighted in episode CD017: VAWA & Funding Defense
- Adds stalking and date rape to list of punishable offenses
- Cyber stalking counts as stalking
- Most of the funding decreased from previous levels
H.R. 749: Banks Only Send Privacy Notices When Something Changes (Passed House 3/12) Highlighted in episode CD018: The Ryan Budget H.R. 890: Extended a welfare program and prohibits states from operating their own (Passed House 3/13) Highlighted in episode CD018: The Ryan Budget H.R. 803: "SKILLS Act" (Passed House 3/15, S. 1911 introduced in Senate committee 1/9/2014) Highlighted in episode CD018: The Ryan Budget
- Would effectively put decisions on welfare-to-work training programs in corporate control by changing the make-up of local boards.
- Would have required layoffs of Federal workers by consolidating 35 programs into one.
H.R. 933: The Continuing Resolution (Passed
Senate 3/20, House 3/21, LAW 3/26)
Highlighted in episodes CD017: VAWA & Funding Defense,
CD019: Continuing Resolution- Part
1, CD020: Continuing Resolution- Part
2, and CD021: Trailblazer vs
Thin-thread
- Funded the government until September 30, 2013
- Included the Monsanto Protection Act
H.R. 678: Waives hydro-power projects from National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (passed House 4/10, Senate 8/1, LAW 8/9) Highlighted in episode CD022: Crippling the Regulators
- Authorizes small hydro-power projects and determines who is first in line for the power
H.R. 1120: Shut Down the National Labor Relations Board until 2014 (passed 4/12) Highlighted in episode CD022: Crippling the Regulators
- Board would have had to stop all work & not enforce decisions make after 1/4/2012
- Could have restarted if recess appointments were ruled Constitutional or at start of second session of 113th
- All about recess appointments made by President Obama which may have been unconstitutional
S.
716: Gut the STOCK Act (Passed Senate, 4/11, House
4/12, LAW 4/15 - Passed Congress with no
recorded votes) Highlighted in episode CD024: Let's Gut the STOCK Act
- Exempted Congressional staff and executive branch employees from financial reporting.
- Eliminated the searchable website for financial reports.
H.R. 882: No Contracts for Tax Delinquent Companies (passed House 4/15) Highlighted in episode CD024: Let's Gut the STOCK Act
- Can be waived
H.R. 1163: Authorizes NSA Spying &
Data Collection (Passed House 4/16 by 416-0)
Highlighted in
episode CD024: Let's Gut the STOCK
Act
- Provides a framework for the coordination of information security between civilian, national security, and law enforcement communities.
- Focuses on automated and continuous monitoring of information systems.
- Acknowledges “market solutions for the protection of critical information systems important to the national defense and economic security of the National that are designed, built, and operated by the private sector.”
- Authorizes "secure facilities" for storing information
- Authorizes having enough staff with classified clearance to analyze that information
H.R. 756: "Cybersecurity Enhancement Act" (Passed House 4/16) Highlighted in episode CD024: Let's Gut the STOCK Act
- Trains cyber-security professionals with taxpayer money & creates a strategy for buying private sector cloud services
H.R. 624: CISPA "Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act" (Passed House 4/18) Highlighted in episode CD025: What's in CISPA?
- Director of National Intelligence would create procedures for giving "cyber threat information" to private companies and utilities
- Information can be passed from private companies to DHS and DOJ
- Information given by the private companies to the government will be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act
- A company that shares cyber intelligence with the government will be exempt from civil or criminal liability if they act "in good faith"
- The military and intelligence communities can't control, change or direct in any way the cyber-security efforts of a private company.
- Says US citizens can not be targets for surveillance
H.R. 527: The Helium Bill (Passed House 4/26, Senate 9/26, LAW 10/2) Highlighted in episode CD026: A Tale of Two Bills
- Changes the way we sell our stockpile of helium so we get a fairer price & end the global helium shortage by allowing the government to sell our helium
H.R. 807: Debt Ceiling Games (Passed House 5/9) Highlighted in episode CD027: Overtime
- Tells Treasury to make interest payments and social security payments when we hit the debt ceiling
H.R. 1406: Time Off Instead of Overtime Pay (Passed House 5/8, S. 1623 Introduced in Senate committee 10/30) Highlighted in episode CD027: Overtime
- Allows time and a half in paid time off instead of time and a half pay for overtime, if the employee chooses that option
H.R. 45 Repeal Obamacare (Passed House 5/16) Highlighted in episode CD028: The IRS Scandal
- Introduced by Michelle Bachmann
H.R. 1062: Prevent Wall Street Regulations (Passed House 5/17) Highlighted in episode CD028: The IRS Scandal
- Forces SEC to do a cost-benefit analysis on their regulations of Wall Street
- SEC must explain why they didn't include suggestions made by the financial industry
- SEC must review all existing regulations every five years
H.R. 258: Don't Lie About Military Medals for Money (Passed House 5/20, Senate 5/22, LAW 6/2) Highlighted in episode CD029: Keystone XL Pipeline
- The Bush Administration version was ruled unconstitutional for violating the First Amendment
- This changes it so that you get busted for fraud if you fake having a medal for financial gain
H.R. 1073: Penalties for Attacking US and Corporate Ships (Passed House 5/20) Highlighted in episode CD029: Keystone XL Pipeline
- Penalties that currently apply when a US ship or ship in US territory is attacked would be applied worldwide and would include attacks on corporate ships.
H.R. 3: No Permit Needed for Keystone
XL (Passed House 5/22) Highlighted in episode CD029: Keystone XL Pipeline
[caption id="attachment_580" align="aligncenter"
width="300"]
Tar sands oil next to a home in
Mayflower, Arkansas. Source: EPA[/caption]
- Bill by Lee Terry of Nebraska
- Would exempt Keystone XL from the law requiring a Presidental permit
- Government can waive any law or regulation in order to issue the Keystone XL permit
H.R. 1911: Increase Interest Rates for Students (Passed Senate 7/24, Passed House 7/31, LAW 8/9) Highlighted in episodes CD029: Keystone XL Pipeline and CD038: Wasting July
- Caps student loan interest rates at 8.25% for undergrads and 9.5% for graduate level students
H.R. 1344: "Helping Heros Fly Act" (Passed Senate 8/1, House 8/2, LAW 8/9) Highlighted in episode CD029: Keystone XL Pipeline
- Creates procedures for expediting and private TSA screenings for injured and disabled veterans
H.R. 2216: Appropriations for Military Construction and Veterans (Passed House 6/4) Highlighted in episode CD030: Military Construction & Anti-Biotics
- Never went to conference with the Senate & was funded via Jan 2014 omnibus budget
S. 622: Animal Drug Bill (Passed
Senate 5/8, house 6/3, LAW 6/13)
Highlighted in episode CD030: Military Construction &
Anti-Biotics
- Reauthorizes a fee system for accelerating testing or distribution of animal antibiotics
- Caps the amount of revenue the fees can bring into the government
H.R. 1919: Electronic System for Tracing Pharmaceutical Drug Origins (Passed House 6/3) Highlighted in episode CD030: Military Construction & Anti-Biotics
- Allows so much time for implementation that the soonest the system would exist is 2028
- Prohibits states from enacting stricter standards
H.R. 742: Repeal Part of Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform (Passed House 6/12 by 420-2) Highlighted in episode CD031: First Draft of 2014 NDAA
- Makes SEC (Wall Street Police) liable for lawsuits that arise from them sharing information with other regulators.
H.R. 634: Some Financial Gamblers Would be Exempt from Providing Collateral (Passed House 6/12 by 411-12) Highlighted in episode CD031: First Draft of 2014 NDAA H.R. 1256: Merge the Wall Street Police Forces (Passed 6/12) Highlighted in episode CD031: First Draft of 2014 NDAA
- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and SEC would have to issue the exact same rules.
- Would exempt the biggest foreign swap gamblers from United States swaps regulations.
- Matt Taibbi: "This really just gives banks permission to go around the world regulator shopping."
H.R. 1960: House NDAA (Passed 6/14, Final version LAW 12/26) Highlighted in episode CD031: First Draft of 2014 NDAA H.R. 1797: The Abortion Bill (Passed House 6/18, S. 1670 introduced to Senate committee 11/7) Highlighted in episode CD032: The Abortion Bill
- Doctors can't perform an abortion on a fetus that is 20 weeks or older.
- Doctors can be fined and sentenced to five years in prison.
- The mother can't be prosecuted.
- Exceptions: Life of the mother in danger, rape, or incest.
H.R. 1613: Deepwater Drilling in The
Center of the Gulf of Mexico (Passed House 6/27) Highlighted in
episode CD033: Let's Deepwater
Drill
- Approves the treaty with Mexico allowing drilling the Western Gap - in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico.
- Slipped into the 2014 budget and is now LAW
H.R. 2231: Force Offshore Drilling Upon States (Passed House 6/28) Highlighted in episode CD034: Let's Drill Offshore
- Forces Federal government to lease at least 50% of the unleased Outer Continental Shelf with the most fossil fuel resources
- Increase oil and gas production
- Forces leases off of the east coast and southern California
- Limited the content of environmental impact studies
H.R. 2609: Energy & Water Funding (Passed House 7/10) Highlighted in episode CD035: Energy and Water
- Shorted renewable energy by $1.9 billion
- Shorted power grid upgrades, fuel efficiency, energy efficient buildings, geothermal energy, wind energy, energy assistance for the poor, environmental clean ups, and natural gas.
- Gave more than requested for nuclear energy and fossil fuels.
H.R. 2094: The Epinephrine Bill (Passed House 7/30, Senate 10/31, LAW 11/13) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Public schools will be allowed to stockpile epinephrine for students with food allergies and train staff to administer it
H.R. 2218: Coal Waste is Not Hazardous (Passed House 7/25) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Coal industry will have 10 years of meet groundwater protection standards
- EPA cannot categorize waste from burning coal, oil, natural gas, and tar sands as ‘hazardous waste’.
H.R. 1582: Stop EPA Regulations (Passed House 8/1) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- EPA is not allowed to issue a regulation costing over $1 billion
- The social cost of carbon – climate change, cancer rates, etc. – can’t be used in a cost-benefit analysis
H.R. 367: Stop All Regulations, Expect Federal Reserve Regulations (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Authored by Jo Ann Emerson
- Forces Federal agencies to get Congressional approval for all major rules that cost over $100 million, affect the finances of businesses, or create a carbon tax
- If Congress does nothing for 70 working days, the rule can’t be enacted
- None of this is subject to judicial review
- Monetary policy by the Federal Reserve is exempted
H.R. 313: Stop Government Conferences (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Government conferences capped at $500,000 but private companies can make up the rest.
- All conference materials must be posed online.
H.R. 2879: Screw Federal Workers (Passed House 8/1) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Makes it easier to fire high level Federal employees
- Caps some Federal worker bonuses and prohibits any bonus at all for others.
H.R. 1660: Customer Service in Government (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- Each agency must establish customer service standards but will get no extra funding to do so.
H.R. 2769: No IRS Conferences (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July H.R. 2768: IRS Staff Must be Told that Taxpayers Have Rights (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July H.R. 2565: IRS Agents Can't Target Audits for Political Purposes (Passed House 7/31) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July and CD028: The IRS Scandal H.R. 2009: Stop Enforcement of ObamaCare (Passed House 8/2) Highlighted in episode CD038: Wasting July
- IRS prohibited from enforcing tax provisions of Affordable Care Act
H.R. 5: The Charter School Bill (Passed House 7/19) Highlighted in episode CD039: The Charter School Bill
- Expands the number of charter schools
- Gives charter schools as much taxpayer money as real public schools
- Charter school programs can be provided by for-profit businesses
- Public money will go to private schools and tutoring
- Sex education must teach abstinence to get Federal funds
- High schools students contact information must be given to military recruiters
H.R. 2217: DHS Funding Bill (Passed House 6/6) Highlighted in episode CD042: House DHS Funding Bill
- Never went to conference & was funding in the omnibus budget in January 2014.
S. 157 Natural Gas Pipeline in an Alaska National Park (Passed Senate 7/19, House 9/10, LAW 9/18) Highlighted in episode CD043: Nothin'
- Allows permits for small hydroelectric projects and a natural gas pipeline to cut through an Alaska national park.
H.R. 2844: Prevent Americans From Knowing They Have Slow Internet (Passed House 9/9) Highlighted in episode CD043: Nothin'
- FCC does a 25 country comparison of data transmission speeds and price; this bill repeals that report.
H.R. 2275: Damage ObamaCare (Passed House 9/12, passed House & Senate 10/16, LAW 10/17) Highlighted in episode CD043: Nothin' and CD049: Crisis… Postponed
- The bill was the "vehicle" to end the shutdown. The text was completely changed
- Prevents Americans from getting subsidies until the Secretary of Health and Human Services has a subsidy verification system in place.
- Funded government until 1/15/14
- Suspended debt ceiling until 2/7/14
- Killed the Monsanto Protection Act
H.R. 3102: Cut Food Stamps by $40 Billion (Passed House 9/19) Highlighted in episode CD044: Pretend to Defund ObamaCare
- Was Titled the "Nutrition Reform and Work Opportunity Act"
H.R. 1410: Stop a Casino Near Arizona Cardinal's Stadium (Passed House 9/17) Highlighted in episode CD044: Pretend to Defund ObamaCare
- Done on behalf of wealthy casino-owning tribes in Arizona that don't want the competition
S. 793: Organization of American States is the Main Diplomatic Group in South America (Passed House 9/17, Senate 9/25, LAW 10/2) Highlighted in episode CD044: Pretend to Defund ObamaCare
- South American wants us out of their business; we're saying we're not going away.
H.R. 761: Mining Projects are "Infrastructure" (Passed House 9/18) Highlighted in episode CD044: Pretend to Defund ObamaCare
- Exempts mining projects from environmental regulations.
H.R. 1961: Fire Safety Exemption for the Delta Queen (Passed House 9/25) Highlighted in episode CD045: Stop the Shutdown
- Exempts an old wooden boat from fire safety standards for 10 years so it can carry passengers overnight
The Shutdown Bills
- The House CR that didn’t really defund the Affordable Care Act (Episode CD044)
- The Senate CR that has not had a vote yet in the House (Episode CD045)
- The House CR that delays the Affordable Care Act for year (Episode CD046)
- The House CR that delays the Affordable Care Act & kills employer-paid health benefits for Congress and their staff.
- The House bill that requests a conference committee with Senate
- Funds National Parks and some museums
- Funds operations in Washington D.C.
- Funds veterans benefits
- Funds the National Institutes of Health
- Funds the National Guard and reserves
H.R. 2275 finally ended the shutdown (see above) Back to Work H.R. 3080: Rush Water Projects (Passed House 10/23, Passed Senate with changes 10/31) Highlighted in episode CD050: Privatize Water Projects
- Speeds up and consolidates studies
- Speeds up permitting by letting utilities and natural gas companies pay the Army
- Speeds up environmental reviews
- Prohibits lawsuits after five months
- Privatizes maintenance and management of public water infrastructure
H.R. 992: Expands Bank Bailouts (Passed House
10/30) Highlighted in episode CD051: Expand Bank Bailouts
- Bill written mostly by Citigroup lobbyists
- Makes foreign banks eligible for a bailout
- Allows bailout-eligible banks to trade in credit default
swaps
H.R. 2374: Prevent Brokers from Having a Fiduciary Duty to Their Customers (Passed House 10/29) Highlighted in episode CD051: Expand Bank Bailouts
- Prevents a Department of Labor regulation forcing brokers to do what is best for their customers, not themselves
S. 252: Reauthorize and Decrease Funding for Premature Birth Research (Passed House 11/12, Senate 11/14, LAW 11/27) S. 330: HIV Organs Can Go to People With HIV (Passed Senate 6/17, House 11/12, LAW 11/21) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter S. 893: Cost of Living Adjustment for Disabled Veterans (Passed Senate 10/28, House 11/12, LAW 11/21) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter H.R. 2922: Personal Security Detail for Supreme Court Justices (Passed House 11/12, Senate 12/10, LAW 12/20) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter H.R. 982: Publicly Publish Names of People Who Make Asbestos Trust Fund Claims (Passed House 11/13) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter H.R. 2655: Penalize Americans for Using the Justice System (Passed House 11/14) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter
- Imposes mandatory financial penalties for filing “frivolous” lawsuits.
- Eliminates the 21-day grace period to withdraw a lawsuit without financial penalty.
H.R. 3350: Allow Insurance Companies to Sell Junk Policies (Passed House 11/15) Highlighted in episode CD053: TPP- The Leaked Chapter H.R. 2061: DATA Act (Passed House 11/12) Highlighted in episodes CD054: Hidden Data Act and CD057: Data Act-tually Pretty Good
- Streamline reporting standards and publish spending data on USAspending.gov
H.R. 1965: Hand Over Our Land to Oil
Companies (Passed House 11/20)
Highlighted in episode CD055: Three Bills for Fossil
Fuels
- Speeds up oil and gas permitting
- Forces us to lease our land to fossil fuel companies
- Leases land for oil shale development - a technology that still doesn't exist
- Limits Americans' access to the courts to stop drilling
- Severely limit Native Americans' access to the courts to stop drilling
H.R. 2728: Prevent Fracking Regulations (Passed House 11/20) Highlighted in episode CD055: Three Bills for Fossil Fuels
- Prevents Federal regulation of fracking
- Rigs studies to only examine benefits of fracking, not the costs
H.R. 1900: Speed Up Gas Pipeline Permitting (Passed House 11/21) Highlighted in episode CD055: Three Bills for Fossil Fuels
- Automatically permits pipelines that are not permitted in under 120 days
H.R. 3547: Public Insurance for Private Space Flights (Passed House 12/2, served as the vehicle for the 2014 budget, LAW 1/17/14) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014
- Taxpayers will pay for private space accidents starting at $500 million and up to $2.8 billion
H.R. 2719: TSA Must Publish Their Plans for New Technology (Passed House 12/3, S. 1893 referred to Senate committee 12/20) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014
- TSA must publicly publish a plan for the security technology they intend to buy
- Private sector must be included and plan must identify "public private partnership" opportunities
H.R. 3626: Illegal To Have Firearms Undetectable to Metal Detectors (Passed House 12/3, Senate 12/9, LAW 12/9) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014 H.R. 1105: Private Equity Fund Advisors Don't Need to Register With SEC (Passed House 12/4) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014 H.R. 3309: Limit Patent Lawsuits (Passed House 12/5) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014
- Claims must be available on a public, searchable website
- Limits lawsuits down the supply chain
- Lawsuit losers must pay expenses and fees of the winners
H.R. 3304: NDAA for 2014 (Passed House 10/28, Senate 11/19, LAW 12/26) Highlighted in episode CD059: NDAA 2014
- A cyber-security section was added last minute by Jay Rockefeller
- Creates a "Conflict Records Research Center" and allows states, foreign governments, and “any source in the private sector” to give money to the Department of Defense.
- Allows contractors to make more than the President of the United States.
- Expands the drug war to Chad, Libya, Mali, & Niger.