From the CSAC Bulletin, Dec. 5, 2014:
"With very few legislative days remaining on the 2014 calendar, lawmakers returned to Washington, D.C. this week following a brief Thanksgiving holiday hiatus. Among the biggest issues left on the congressional agenda are a fiscal year 2015 spending bill, defense policy legislation, and a tax extenders package.
With funding for government programs currently operating under a Continuing Resolution (CR) - which is set to expire on December 11 - House and Senate appropriators continued to meet throughout the week with hopes of resolving any outstanding issues. As of this writing, House Republican leaders are planning to combine 11 detailed spending bills into one final budget package, which would carry most government spending through next September. Funding for the Department of Homeland Security, however, would only be extended through February or March, a move intended as a rebuke to President Obama's recent Executive Order on immigration (see below for additional discussion on immigration).
It should be noted that if lawmakers are unable to reach a long-term spending agreement in the coming days, congressional leaders will be forced to resort to another short-term CR in order to avoid a government shutdown.
In addition to making tough decisions regarding spending levels for individual programs, appropriators are discussing the possibility of attaching various policy riders to the fiscal year 2015 budget. House Republicans, for example, are seeking to block several of the Obama administration's proposed regulations, including a joint proposal from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that seeks to expand the definition of "Waters of the U.S." under the Clean Water Act. In addition, Republicans are looking to prevent EPA from finalizing a rule that would regulate greenhouse gas emissions from new and existing power plants.
Congressional Republicans also are pushing to include language in the final budget that would completely bar funding for the president's recent immigration executive order. Under the administration's policy, which was formally announced on November 20, millions of undocumented immigrants living in the United States would be temporarily shielded from deportation. On a related matter, and in separate action, the House approved on December 4 legislation (HR 5759) that would prohibit the White House from providing any deportation waivers to undocumented immigrants. The bill is not expected to be considered by the Democratic controlled Senate.
In other developments, the House on December 3 overwhelmingly approved legislation (HR 5771) that would extend more than 50 expired tax breaks for one additional year. Hopes of substituting a more ambitious two-year plan were squandered just prior to the House vote. The measure now moves to the Senate, which is expected to clear the legislation sometime next week.
With regard to the aforementioned defense policy legislation, the House on December 4 overwhelmingly approved HR 3937, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The $577.1 billion measure, which the upper chamber will likely consider next week, would set the Pentagon’s policy and funding levels for the remainder of the fiscal year. It should be noted that the bill is likely to face opposition from senators who are opposed to the inclusion of a number of unrelated public land provisions.
Of interest to a number of California counties, the Defense bill would allow the Pentagon to conduct an analysis of excess military infrastructure. While some see the study as a potential precursor to a future Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) round, HR 3937 includes language that would expressly prohibit the Pentagon from initiating the politically painful process of closing domestic military bases.
Drought Legislation
Representative David Valadao (R-CA) introduced this week legislation designed to provide temporary drought relief to the parched Central Valley. The bill, which is a scaled-back version of an earlier measure (HR 3964) that passed the House on a near party-line vote, is cosponsored by several California House Republicans, as well as Representative Jim Costa (D-CA).
HR 5781 includes a number of provisions aimed at boosting water deliveries to drought-stricken areas of the state, including language that would provide federal resource agencies with additional operational flexibility. The bill also includes language stipulating that authorities under the legislation would expire on September 30, 2016 or the date the emergency drought declaration is lifted, whichever is later.
The measure, which cleared the House Rules Committee earlier this week, is expected to be on the House floor the week of December 8. While the legislation is likely to pass the lower chamber with strong support from California's Republican delegation, it faces stiff opposition from Northern California Democrats and Senator Boxer. For her part, Senator Feinstein - who earlier this year marshaled an alternative drought measure (S 228) through the Senate - has yet to comment on the recast House bill.
Marketplace Fairness Act
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) this week reiterated that the lower chamber would not consider online sales tax legislation - the Marketplace Fairness Act (S 743) - before the end of the year. The measure, which the Senate approved in May 2013, would give states the ability to collect sales taxes from out-of-state Internet retailers.
Incidentally, House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) is reportedly close to finalizing his own online sales tax proposal, but it is unclear when the legislation will be unveiled. Goodlatte has previously expressed concerns about the challenges faced by businesses in collecting and remitting sales taxes to a number of different jurisdictions. He also has expressed the need for safeguards to ensure that states cannot discriminate against out-of-state retailers.
Finally, in a related development, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) stated this week that lawmakers will likely reach an agreement before the end of the session on an extension of the Internet access tax moratorium, which expires next week. As of this writing, it appears that a temporary continuation of the access tax moratorium - lasting anywhere from a few months to a year - may be included in the aforementioned spending package."
Also attached is the 2014 Election Analysis of the County's federal advocates, Alcalde & Fay. (See Attachment A.) |