congressional roll call
HOUSE SELECT HOUSE COMMITTEE ON GUN VIOLENCE:
The House on Nov. 7 blocked, 233 for and 182 against, an attempt by Democrats to force floor debate on legislation (H Res 367) that would establish the Select Committee for Gun Violence Prevention comprised of six Republican and six Democratic members. Now in committee, the measure would probe the causes of mass shootings, exploring means of keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and the mentally ill and tightening background checks on firearms purchasers, among other topics. The vote occurred two days after a shooting at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, that left 20 persons dead and 20 wounded. Had Democrats prevailed on this vote, they would have had an opportunity to bring their legislation to the floor.
Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said, “What will it take? If the deaths of those children in Sandy Hook Elementary School weren’t enough for Congress to take action, if the 49 lives lost in Orlando weren’t enough, if the 58 lives lost in Las Vegas weren’t enough and if the 26 lives lost in Texas on Sunday aren’t enough, then nothing may ever be enough for Congress to have the courage to do the right thing.”
Opponents did not speak on the issue.
A yes vote opposed floor debate on the gun measure.
ARKANSAS
Voting yes: Bruce Westerman, R-4
TEXAS
Voting yes: Louie Gohmert, John Ratcliffe
WORKPLACE LIABILITY FOR JOINT EMPLOYERS:
Voting 242 for and 181 against, the House on Nov. 7 passed a GOP-drafted bill (HR 3441) that would change the National Labor Relations Board’s “joint employer” standard in a way that would make it more difficult for workers to file actions against employers. The standard comes into play when two or more businesses share control of workers, which occurs, for example, when companies outsource hiring to staffing agencies or utilize contract employees. At present, the board holds employers responsible for violations of workplace laws if they have indirect or direct control over workers. This bill would limit liability to employers who exercise direct and immediate control over workers’ terms and conditions of employment. In so doing, it would grant broad immunity against workplace litigation to franchisors and companies that rely heavily on outside personnel.
Tim Walberg, R-Mich., said: “It is time to settle once and for all what constitutes a joint employer, not through arbitrary and misguided NLRB decisions and rulings by activist judges, but through legislation.”
Marica Fudge, D-Ohio, said, “corporate profits and income inequality are at an all-time high, yet we are debating a bill that would strip workers of their right to hold employers accountable, allowing corporations to further stifle wage growth and undermine collective bargaining.”
A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.
ARKANSAS
Voting yes: Westerman
TEXAS
Voting yes: Gohmert, Ratcliffe
STREAMLINED HYDROPOWER APPPROVALS
Voting 257 for and 166 against, the House on Nov. 8 passed bill (HR 3043) that would designate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as the lead agency for licensing hydropower projects on American waterways. The bill is intended to expedite what is now a lengthy approval process involving other federal agencies, environmental laws including the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act and the rights of tribes, states and localities to manage water resources within their boundaries.
Fred Upton, R-Mich., said, “Without the hydropower licensing improvements in this bill, we risk losing investment opportunities in new hydropower infrastructure which would benefit consumers with affordable electricity and expand the use of clean, renewable energy.”
Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said the bill would “allow private hydropower companies to use public water resources to generate power and profit, but without mitigating the negative impacts of their facilities on others who rely on our rivers, and without complying with modern environmental laws.”
A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.
ARKANSAS
Voting yes: Westerman
TEXAS
Voting yes: Gohmert, Ratcliffe
DEREGULATION OF STOCK OFFERINGS:
Voting 232 for and 188 against, the House on Nov. 9 passed a bill (HR 2201) that would allow certain small businesses to sell stock in private offerings free of Securities and Exchange Commission registration and transparency rules. Those rules are intended to discourage fraud and inform investors about the soundness of marketed securities. For example, they require companies to submit certified financial statements and disclose information about management including any criminal records. Under this bill, firms would be exempt from registering securities if the aggregate amount of the private offering is less than $500,000 over 12 months and there are 35 or fewer purchasers, each of whom has a pre-existing relationship with the issuer.
Tom Emmer, R-Minn., said the bill would “make it easier for entrepreneurs … to raise money from family, friends and their personal network without running afoul of the vague and undefined private-offering, safe-harbor provisions in the Securities Act of 1933.”
Louise Slaughter, R-N.Y., said the bill “would leave investors vulnerable to fraud by allowing companies to sell unregistered securities without the important guardrails that apply to these transactions today.”
A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.
ARKANSAS
Voting yes: Westerman
TEXAS
Voting yes: Gohmert, Ratcliffe
SENATE WILLIAM WEHRUM, ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICIAL
Voting 49 for and 47 against, the Senate on Nov. 9 confirmed William L. Wehrum as assistant administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Air and Radiation. Wehrum held a similar position in the George W. Bush administration, and in recent years he has been a partner in a Washington law firm that represents the American Petroleum Institute and electric utilities in environmental litigation. He will direct the Trump administration’s dismantling of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from coal-burning electric utilities.
John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said Wehrum has “more than three decades of experience in environmental policy. He has worked as an environmental engineer. He has been a public servant at the EPA as an environmental lawyer.”
Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said Wehrum is “another conflict-ridden, climate-dismissing Trump nominee who has made a career of putting corporate profits ahead of hard-working families who depend on the EPA to have their backs.”
A yes vote was to confirm the nominee.
ARKANSAS
Voting yes: Tom Cotton, R, John Boozman, R
TEXAS
Voting yes: John Cornyn, R, Ted Cruz, R
KEY VOTES AHEAD
The House will take up a tax-overhaul bill in the week of Nov. 13, while the Senate will vote on nominees for positions in the Trump administration.