BIPARTISAN IMMIGRATION REFORM AGREEMENT ON SENATE FLOOR THIS WEEK
Last week, bipartisan negotiators struck an agreement on immigration reform, and a key procedural vote is scheduled for today.
The Senate will debate a motion to proceed on last year’s immigration bill. The new agreement, in legislative language, could be added as an amendment, but the underlying motion has to gain 60 votes to keep the immigration issue alive.
Broadly, the agreement provides stronger border security provisions (additional border patrol agents, fencing, employment verification requirements on employers, etc.) and creates certification requirements of these efforts before a new temporary worker program (Y visas) and the legalization of 12 million illegal immigrations (Z visas) can occur.
NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE ON SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL
Negotiations between congressional leaders and the White House broke down last Friday on the fiscal year (FY) 2007 emergency supplemental appropriations bill, however, talks were scheduled to resume over the weekend and all parties are still calling for final action on a conference report before the recess.
Earlier last week, the Senate approved a placeholder measure; the House passed its version on Thursday, May 10. The House supplemental is a two-tier, short-term bill with additional funding for some domestic items.
The first of these two, H.R. 2206, contains the war money with funds for national concerns including SCHIP, LIHEAP, avian flu preparation, and Hurricane Katrina recovery. The second bill, H.R. 2207, contains the mainly western priorities of agricultural disaster relief, money for wildland fire fighting, and Secure Rural Schools; it passed the House by a veto-proof margin of 302-120.
BUDGET RESOLUTION COMPLETE; FOCUS SHIFTS TO APPROPRIATIONS PROCESS
Congress cleared its FY2008 budget resolution, clearing action on appropriations bills.
The budget caps discretionary spending at $954.1 billion, $21 billion more than President Bush’s request; allows for a one-year patch to keep the Alternative Minimum Tax from affecting more middle-income taxpayers; and relies upon a trigger mechanism to ensure that renewed tax cuts are either offset or certified that they won’t eat into 80 percent of any surplus.
Because the budget provides more than $21 billion in spending than the President requested in his budget blueprint, he has threatened to veto the upcoming, individual spending bills that go over.
As the focus shifts to the appropriations process, the Legislative Branch Subcommittee has scheduled a markup on Thursday, May 24, and the Military Construction/VA, and Interior/Environment may also schedule markups this week.
Last week, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security approved its FY 2008 spending bill. The Subcommittee provided approximately $7.1 billion for preparedness programs and disaster relief, including $550 million for the State Homeland Security Grant Program, $800 million for the Urban Area Security Initiative, $400 million for law enforcement terrorism prevention grants, $400 million for port security grants, $400 million for rail and transit security, $50 million for REAL ID grants, $50 million for interoperable communications, $800 million for fighter assistance grants, $300 for Emergency Management Performance Grants, $1.7 billion for the disaster relief fund, $50 million for the Metropolitan Medical Response System, and $120 million for the National Pre-disaster Mitigation Fund.
The bill also includes language altering Department of Homeland Security rules that allow federal regulations to supersede state chemical security laws.
ENERGY LEGISLATION MOVING FORWARD IN SENATE, HOUSE COMMITTEES
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality will hold a hearing next week on its part of the larger House energy bill being crafted.
The Energy and Commerce draft bill will focus on coal-to-liquids, appliance energy standards, loan guarantees, and a smart electricity grid. A mark-up of the package is expected after Memorial Day.
Additionally, another House panel is moving forward with its combined energy/climate change bill. The House Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on HR 2337 next Wednesday. The bill covers carbon sequestration, climate change affects on wildlife, and would repeal Section 390 of last year’s energy bill (categorical exclusions) among other things.
Meanwhile, the Senate
Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a
mark-up of pending energy bills on Wednesday, and
then on Thursday will hold a hearing on coal
gasification, coal-to-liquids, and industrial
gasification.
HOUSE FARM BILL MARKUP THIS WEEK
This week, two House Agriculture Subcommittees will mark-up the conservation and livestock titles of the new farm bill on May 22 and May 24, respectively. In all, ten titles will be included in the mark-up, similar to the current farm bill.
Under the conservation title, Chairman Peterson’s outline would freeze the Conservation Security Program (no new sign-ups to 2012) and take the $1 billion and divert it to other programs. Programs that might see an increase could be the Wetlands Reserve Program and the Grasslands Reserve Program.
Putting a freeze on the CSP puts Chairman Peterson (D-MN) instantly at odds with his Senate counterpart, Chairman Harkin (D-IA). Chairman Harkin created the CSP in the 2002 farm bill and will likely be fiercely protective of it. Moreover, Chairman Harkin’s approach will be to increase renewable energy production at the potential expense of commodity money. Chairman Harkin is expected to release his chairman’s draft in June. But the broad goal of his energy title alone would be to boost the development and production of cellulosic biofuels (30 billion gallons by 2020; 60 billion gallons by 2030); help farmers and businesses produce energy or reduce their consumption; and provide incentives for wind power and other renewables, and support for bio-energy research.
Chairman Peterson hopes to have the overall farm bill approved by the full committee by July 4.
