On The Hill

This week on the Hill will be a short week, with Republican members of both the House and Senate scheduled to attend their annual retreat from Thursday, January 29 through, Saturday, January 31. The Senate will likely finish its work on pension rate reform legislation (H.R. 3108) before it adjourns. Senate debate on class action legislation (S. 1751) which was expected to occur this week, has been postponed until February or March, after consideration of the highway bill. The House is scheduled to consider the Senate bill (S.1920) on family farm bankruptcy but is expected to attach to the broader bankruptcy bill (H.R. 975), which the House passed in March.

Several key state-federal issues are expected to be addressed in committees this week, including the markup of the highway bill tax provision in the Senate Finance Committee, followed by the Senate Banking, Housing , and Urban Affairs markup of the transit provisions. In addition, hearings on preemption of state banking authority and the Internet tobacco sales are scheduled.

Senate Passes Omnibus

On Thursday, January 22, after voting 61-32 to invoke cloture, the Senate passed the omnibus appropriations conference report by a vote of 65-28. The measure incorporates the seven remaining fiscal year 2004 spending bills and also includes provisions on food labeling, overtime rules, and media ownership that were opposed by most Democrats. The President signed the bill on Friday, January 23, thereby bringing to a close the FY 2004 appropriations process. The process for the next fiscal year is expected to begin on Monday, February 2, when the President submits his FY 2005 budget request to Congress.

TEA-21 Reauthorization

The Senate Finance Committee has scheduled a markup on the funding title of the TEA-21 reauthorization bill for Wednesday morning, January 28. According to the publication Green Sheets, if Finance can complete action on the measure at that time, the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee will follow with its own markup on transit provisions later in the day, a Banking staff member said. A Finance Committee staff source said the committee was still considering several different approaches to raising the revenue for the Senate bill, expected to come in at about $311 billion. Before the markup can be held, "we still need to make sure that it scores correctly -- that it raises the amount of money that we need to raise," the staffer said.

The committee reportedly is leaning toward adopting what one staffer termed "a series of accounting mechanisms" that would effectively shift monies from the government's general fund to the Highway Trust Fund, transferring an ethanol subsidy and state and local government exemptions to the general fund. The Environment and Public Works Committee and the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which also share Senate jurisdiction over the measure, approved their respective portions in November.

Meanwhile, leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee plan to mark up their own, more expensive, version of the legislation next week, in hopes of moving the bill to the House floor the week of Feb. 9, a committee staff member said. The committee asked all Members of the House to submit their final project lists by Monday, January 26.
The great majority of committee members -- including Chairman Don Young (R-Alaska) and Rep. James Oberstar (Minn.), the panel's ranking Democrat -- continue to support a $375 billion measure that would rely, in part, on a gasoline tax increase.

The Bush administration has remained adamant against hiking the gasoline tax. Its own reauthorization bill would provide $247 billion for transportation programs, far less than either chamber is considering.

Efforts to Extend Supplemental Unemployment Compensation Stalled in Senate

On Wednesday, January 21, Senator Don Nickles (R-OK) objected to a unanimous consent request from Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass) for the Senate to approve by voice vote a bill to renew supplemental unemployment compensation benefits. Supplemental benefits expired in December. S. 2006, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Amendments of 2004 would provide an additional 13 weeks of benefits to those who exhaust 26 weeks of state unemployment benefits. Benefits in states with particularly high unemployment rates would be extended for 26 weeks.

Administration to Propose Increase in Homeland Security Spending

Last week, the Administration announced that in its proposed fiscal year 2005 budget, which is expected to be released on February 2, spending for homeland security would grow by 9.7 percent, totaling more than $30 billion. The remaining non-defense discretionary programs would be held to a 1 percent overall growth.

End of Year Report, 2003

The State of Nevada Washington Office has released its End of Year Report for 2003. The report contains a detailed index of Nevada-specific appropriations for Fiscal Year 2004, summary and analysis of legislative actions of interest to the State of Nevada during 2003, and an outlook for 2004 legislative action. The report, along with recently updated legislative summary and Nevada-specific resources, is available on our website at www.sso.org/nevada

A list of this week's federal register notices is also available on our website.

Key Committee Meetings

Budget and Economic Outlook: The Senate Budget Committee will hold a hearing on Tuesday, January 27, on the Congressional Budget (CBO) ten-year budget and economic outlook, with CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin scheduled to testify (10:00 a.m. SD-608 Dirksen Senate Office Building). The House Budget Committee has scheduled a similar hearing for 2:00 p.m. the same day in 210 Cannon House Office Building.

Child Welfare: The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources will hold a hearing on Wednesday, January 28, at 10:30 a.m., in B-318 Rayburn House Office Building on federal and state oversight of child welfare programs.

Highways: The Senate Finance Committee has scheduled a Wednesday, January 28, markup of the tax provisions of the highways reauthorization bill (SD-215 Dirksen Senate Office Building -- time to be announced).

Homeland Security. The House Select Homeland Security Committee has scheduled a Wednesday, January 28, hearing on the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program (10:30 a.m., 345 Cannon House Office Building). Undersecretary of Homeland Security Asa Hutchinson and Assistant Secretary of State Maura Harty will testify.

Internet Tobacco Sales. The House Judiciary Committee will hold a markup on the Tobacco Sales Enforcement Act (H.R. 2824) on Wednesday, January 28, at 10:00 a.m. in 2141 Rayburn House Office Building.