January 30, 2015
The House passed several measures aimed at preventing and prosecuting human trafficking as well as HR 351, the LNG Permitting Certainty and Transparency Act. The Senate passed S 1, the Keystone XL Pipeline Act by a 62 to 36 vote after voting on more than 40 amendments. The House passed a similar measure (HR 3) on January 9. President Obama has vowed to veto the bill, and any conference measure is unlikely to get the necessary 2/3 votes in both the House and Senate to override a veto.
House Republican February Agenda
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) sent a memo to House Republicans yesterday outlining their agenda for the month of February. The House will first take up a bill (HR 596) repealing Obamacare. While the House has passed repeal measures in the past, this attempt will include instructions for committees to craft a Republican alternative to Obamacare. The agenda also calls for making permanent tax breaks for charitable giving, preventing the Administration from “coercing states to adopt Common Core standards,” and a bill opposing any plan to tax 529 college savings accounts. And, if the Senate passes a FY15 DHS appropriations bill that is different from the one passed by the House in January, the House will conference with the Senate in February. The memo does not mention HR 399, the Secure Our Borders First Act or HR 36, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Both bills were scheduled for House floor consideration in January, but were pulled when it was clear that the GOP did not have the votes for passing them.
FY15 DHS Appropriations
The Senate is poised to consider the FY15 Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill next week, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will be challenged in finding the 60 votes needed for moving the measure forward. Senate Democrats, hoping to force Republicans to strip out riders blocking President Obama’s immigration actions, have said that they will not vote for cloture on the bill.
Earlier this week, Senate Democrats signed and sent a letter to McConnell urging for passage of a clean FY15 DHS Appropriations bill. Sens. Shaheen (D-NH), ranking member of the Homeland Security Appropriations subcommittee, and Sen. Mikulski (D-MD), ranking member of the full committee, also introduced a clean bill to fund DHS through the end of FY15. S 272 is based on the House and Senate December 2014 DHS compromise.
Another obstacle to the House-passed DHS funding bill is that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its score of the bill this week. CBO estimates that the immigration-related provisions in the House bill would add a net of $7.5 billion to the federal deficit over the next decade.
The current CR funding DHS expires on February 27.
A copy of the Senate Democrats’ letter can be found at:
http://www.shaheen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/01.27.15%20DHS%20Funding%20Letter.pdf
And a copy of the Senate Democrats’ bill, S 272, can be found at:
http://www.shaheen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/01.28.15%20DHS%20Bill.pdf
CBO Annual Budget and Economic Outlook
The Congressional Budget Office released its annual Budget and Economic Outlook this week. The outlook contains baseline projections based on current federal law for forecasting spending, tax revenues, the deficit and other economic factors associated with legislation and the federal budget. This latest outlook projects that the federal deficit will fall to $468B in FY2015 and $467B in FY2016 but rise to over $1T in FY2025. The reasons for the long-term deficit growth can be attributed to slowing economic growth and accelerating baby boomer retirements. The CBO’s last update was released in August. CBO Director Doug Elmendorf will testify before the House and Senate Budget Committees next week.
A copy of the CBO’s outlook can be found at:
http://www.cbo.gov/publication/49892
House Appropriations Deadlines
The House Appropriations subcommittee chairmen released their guidance letters to members of Congress this week. The letters included procedures for receiving members’ programmatic and language submissions for consideration in the FY16 appropriations process as well as the deadlines for each subcommittee.
| Subcommittee | Deadline |
| Agriculture | March 23 |
| Commerce Justice Science | March 25 |
| Defense | March 25 |
| Energy & Water | March 18 |
| Financial Services | March 26 |
| Homeland Security | March 26 |
| Interior | March 23 |
| Labor HHS | March 26 |
| Legislative Branch | March 18 |
| Military Construction/Veterans Affairs | March 18 |
| State Foreign Operations | March 25 |
| Transportation HUD | March 23 |
The subcommittee letters can be found at:
http://appropriations.house.gov/legislation/memberinstructions.htm
Cloud Computing
Cloud computing vendors seeking to sell cloud services to federal agencies currently must get security accreditation through GSA’s FedRAMP. To date, FedRAMP has offered accreditations up to the “moderate-impact” level, but demand for higher levels has grown as cloud computing has become an accepted norm. The General Services Administration (GSA) released draft security control standards for cloud systems supporting these higher levels or “high impact” uses. “High impact” uses are any systems necessary to support agency continuity of operations and systems that agencies have identified under their critical infrastructure plans.
The draft high baseline documents lay out a process for authorizing cloud service providers to host data that, if leaked or otherwise compromised, would have a significant impact, including personal harm, loss of life or financial ruin. Most of the information to be covered under the high baseline will be law enforcement data and patient health records, but will not cover classified information or data relevant to national security.
The draft security control standards will go through two rounds of public comment before becoming final. This draft will be open for comment for 45 days (ending 3/13/15) before a second draft is issued (summer 2015). The final version is expected before the end of 2015.
A copy of the draft can be found at:
http://cloud.cio.gov/document/fedramp-high-baseline
Committee Rosters
House Armed Services Committee
HASC Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-CA) and Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-WA) announced the final majority and minority members who will lead and serve on subcommittees for the 114th Congress.
EMERGING THREATS AND CAPABILITIES
Majority Members
Mr. Wilson, Chairman
Mr. Kline
Mr. Shuster
Mr. Hunter
Mr. Nugent
Mr. Zinke
Mr. Franks
Mr. Lamborn
Mr. Brooks
Mr. Byrne
Ms. Stefanik
Minority Members
Mr. Langevin, Ranking Member
Mr. Cooper
Mr. Garamendi
Mr. Castro
Mr. Veasey
Mr. Norcross
Mr. Ashford
Mr. Aguilar
MILITARY PERSONNEL
Majority Members
Dr. Heck, Chairman
Mr. Jones
Mr. Kline
Mr. Coffman
Mr. MacArthur
Ms. Stefanik
Mr. Cook
Mr. Knight
Minority Members
Mrs. Davis, Ranking Member
Mr. Brady
Ms. Tsongas
Ms. Speier
Mr. Walz
Mr. O’Rourke
OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS
Majority Members
Mrs. Hartzler, Chairwoman
Mr. Miller
Mr. Conaway
Dr. Heck
Mr. Scott
Ms. McSally
Minority Members
Ms. Speier, Ranking Member
Mr. Cooper
Mr. Johnson
Ms. Graham
READINESS
Majority Members
Mr. Wittman, Chairman
Mr. Bishop
Mrs. Hartzler
Mr. Scott
Ms. Stefanik
Mr. LoBiondo
Mr. Rogers
Mr. Gibson
Mr. Palazzo
Mr. Nugent
Dr. Wenstrup
Mr. Graves
Minority Members
Ms. Bordallo, Ranking Member
Mrs. Davis
Mr. Courtney
Mr. Castro
Ms. Duckworth
Mr. Peters
Ms. Gabbard
Mr. O’Rourke
Mr. Gallego
SEAPOWER AND PROJECTION FORCES
Majority Members
Mr. Forbes, Chairman
Mr. Conaway
Mr. Palazzo
Mr. Byrne
Mr. Wittman
Mr. Hunter
Mrs. Hartzler
Mr. Cook
Mr. Bridenstine
Mrs. Walorski
Mr. Zinke
Mr. Knight
Minority Members
Mr. Courtney, Ranking Member
Mr. Langevin
Mr. Larsen
Ms. Bordallo
Mr. Johnson
Mr. Peters
Ms. Gabbard
Ms. Graham
Mr. Moulton
STRATEGIC FORCES
Majority Members
Mr. Rogers, Chairman
Mr. Franks
Mr. Lamborn
Mr. Coffman
Mr. Brooks
Mr. Bridenstine
Mr. Forbes
Mr. Bishop
Mr. Turner
Dr. Fleming
Minority Members
Mr. Cooper, Ranking Member
Ms. Sanchez
Mr. Larsen
Mr. Garamendi
Mr. Takai
Mr. Ashford
Mr. Aguilar
TACTICAL AIR AND LAND FORCES
Majority Members
Mr. Turner, Chairman
Mr. LoBiondo
Dr. Fleming
Mr. Gibson
Mr. Cook
Dr. Wenstrup
Mrs. Walorski
Mr. Graves
Ms. McSally
Mr. Knight
Mr. MacArthur
Mr. Jones
Mr. Wilson
Minority Members
Ms. Sanchez, Ranking Member
Ms. Tsongas
Mr. Johnson
Ms. Duckworth
Mr. Veasey
Mr. Walz
Mr. Norcross
Mr. Gallego
Mr. Takai
Ms. Graham
Mr. Moulton
House Intelligence Committee
The Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence adopted a new subcommittee structure and named its subcommittee chairmen, ranking members, and members this week. Chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA) said that the new subcommittee structure is “designed to enhance oversight of the relevant agencies and departments.” The committee will comprise the following four subcommittees:
CIA Subcommittee
LoBiondo (Chairman), Conaway, King, Westmoreland, Rooney, Pompeo
Swalwell (Ranking Member), Gutierrez, Himes, Carson
Jurisdiction: Central Intelligence Agency programs and Central Intelligence Agency Retirement Fund
Department of Defense Intelligence and Overhead Architecture Subcommittee
Heck (Chairman), Miller, Ros-Lehtinen, Turner, Wenstrup, Stewart
Sewell (Ranking Member), Gutierrez, Swalwell, Murphy
Jurisdiction: National Reconnaissance Program (NRP), the National Geospatial-Intelligence Program (NGP), the General Defense Intelligence Program (Defense Intelligence Agency), and Department of Defense activities that are funded through the Military Intelligence Program (MIP)
Emerging Threats Subcommittee
Rooney (Chairman), LoBiondo, Heck, Turner, Wenstrup, Stewart
Quigley (Ranking Member), Sewell, Carson, Speier
Jurisdiction: Office of the Director of National Intelligence, including the National Counterterrorism Center, the National Counterproliferation Center and the National Counterintelligence and Security Center; the national security components of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Intelligence Community-wide integration and information sharing programs; and the intelligence elements of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Departments of State (DOS), Homeland Security (DHS), Energy (DOE), and Treasury (DOT).
NSA and Cybersecurity Subcommittee
Westmoreland (Chairman), Miller, Conaway, King, Pompeo, Ros-Lehtinen
Himes (Ranking Member), Speier, Quigley, Murphy
Jurisdiction: National Security Agency programs, including cybersecurity policy and information sharing; and the Department of Defense Information Systems Security Program.
Senate Appropriations Subcommittees
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Vice Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) announced members for the 12 subcommittees that make up the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Majority
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), chairman
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Susan Collins (R-Maine)
John Hoeven (R-N.D.)
Steve Daines (R-Mont.)
Minority
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), ranking member
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
John Tester (D-Mont.)
Tom Udall (D-N.M.)
Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Majority
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), chairman
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Susan Collins (R-Maine)
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
John Boozman (R-Ark.)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)
James Lankford (R-Okla.)
Minority
Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), ranking member
Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Chris Coons (D-Del.)
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)
Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
Defense
Majority
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), chairman
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
Susan Collins (R-Maine)
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
Steve Daines (R-Mont.)
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)
Minority
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), vice chairman
Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.)
Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
Jon Tester (D-Mont.)
Tom Udall (D-N.M.)
Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Energy and Water Development
Majority
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)
Susan Collins (R-Maine)
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
John Hoeven (R-N.D.)
James Lankford (R-Okla.)
Minority
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), ranking member
Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
Jon Tester (D-Mont.)
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)
Tom Udall (D-N.M.)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)
Chris Coons (D-Del.)
Financial Services and General Government
Majority
John Boozman (R-Ark.), chairman
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)
James Lankford (R-Okla.)
Minority
Chris Coons (D-Del.), ranking member
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)
Department of Homeland Security
Majority
John Hoeven (R-N.D.), chairman
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Minority
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), ranking member
Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
Jon Tester (D-Mont.)
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Majority
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), chairman
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
John Hoeven (R-N.D.)
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Steve Daines (R-Mont.)
Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Minority
Tom Udall (D-N.M.), ranking member
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
Jon Tester (D-Mont.)
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
Majority
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), chairman
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)
Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)
James Lankford (R-Okla.)
Minority
Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking member
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)
Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)
Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)
Legislative Branch
Majority
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chairman
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)
Minority
Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), ranking member
Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
Majority
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), chairman
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
John Hoeven (R-N.D.)
Susan Collins (R-Maine)
John Boozman (R-Ark.)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)
Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Minority
Jon Tester (D-Mont.), ranking member
Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
Tom Udall (D-N.M.)
Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.)
Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
Majority
Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), chairman
Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
John Boozman (R-Ark.)
Jerry Moran (R-Kan.)
James Lankford (R-Okla.)
Steve Daines (R-Mont.)
Minority
Patrick Leahy (R-Vt.), ranking member
Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.)
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Chris Coons (D-Del.)
Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)
Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Majority
Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairman
Richard Shelby (R-Ala.)
Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
John Boozman (R-Ark.)
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)
Bill Cassidy (R-La.)
Steve Daines (R-Mont.)
Minority
Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member
Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.)
Patty Murray (D-Wash.)
Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)
Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Chris Coons (D-Del.)
Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)
Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
Appropriations Committee Chairman Cochran and Vice Chairwoman Mikulski are also ex-officio members of each subcommittee of which they are not regular members.
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-DE) announced subcommittee members for its three subcommittees for the 114th Congress. Johnson and Carper are ex-officio members of every subcommittee.
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI)
Majority Members
Rob Portman (R-OH), Chairman
John McCain (R-AZ)
Rand Paul (R-KY)
James Lankford (R-OK)
Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)
Ben Sasse (R-NE)
Minority Members
Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Ranking Member
Jon Tester (D-MT)
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)
Subcommittee on Federal Spending Oversight and Emergency Management (FSO)
Majority Members
Rand Paul (R-KY), Chairman
James Lankford (R-OK)
Michael B. Enzi (R-WY)
Kelly Ayotte (R-NH)
Joni Ernst (R-IA)
Ben Sasse (R-NE)
Minority Members
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Ranking Member
Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
Cory A. Booker (D-NJ)
Gary C. Peters (D-MI)
Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management (RAFM)
Majority Members
James Lankford (R-OK), Chairman
John McCain (R-AZ)
Rob Portman (R-OH)
Michael B. Enzi (R-WY)
Joni Ernst (R-IA)
Ben Sasse (R-NE)
Minority Members
Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Ranking Member
Jon Tester (D-MT)
Cory A. Booker (D-NJ)
Gary C. Peters (D-MI)
Political Updates
House Conservatives formed a new caucus focused on “limited, constitutional government in Congress.” The House Freedom Caucus has nine members to start and it isn’t clear how it will distinguish itself from the Republican Study Committee who has over 170 members. Original members of the group include Reps. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Jim Jordan (R-OH), John Fleming (R-LA), Matt Salmon (R-AZ), Justin Amash (R-MI), Raul Labrador (R-ID), Mick Mulvaney (R-SC), Ron DeSantis (R-FL), and Mark Meadows (R-NC).
NSA Director and Commander of the US Cyber Command Michael Rogers appointed Jonathan Freed as the agency’s new Associate Director for Strategic Communications. Freed is a longtime public relations professional and former journalist. He most recently served as a media relations and public affairs executive at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The President nominated Stuart Delery to be Associate Attorney General at the Department of Justice and Albert Meiburg to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Next Week
The House will take up HR 596, a bill repealing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010; HR 50, the Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2015; and HR 527, the Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2015. The Senate will take up HR 203, the Clay Hunt SAV Act and HR 240, the FY15 DHS Appropriations Act. And the President releases his FY16 budget request on Monday at 11:30 am.