Federal Legislative Update - Week of July 24, 2023

By Vanessa Gonzales posted 07-25-2023 10:15 AM

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Congressional

Outlook

The House and Senate are in session. This week marks the final week Congress is in session before the month-long August recess begins.

Appropriators have released the bill text and summaries of all 12 spending bills in the House, with only the Labor-HHS-Education and Commerce-Justice-Science bills awaiting full committee markups. This week, lawmakers in the House are preparing floor votes on the FY24 Agriculture-FDA (H.R. 4368) and Military Construction-Veterans Affairs (H.R. 4366) spending bills during the week of July 24. The White House shared two “Statements of Administration Policy” for the MilCon-VA and Agriculture-FDA Appropriations bills, stating President Biden would veto the bills if they were to make it to the President’s desk. On Thursday, Senate appropriators will complete full markups of their versions of the FY24 Defense, Interior & Environment, Labor-HHS-Education, and Homeland Security bills, completing markups of all 12 spending bills before the start of the August recess. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) shared his prediction of a continuing resolution beginning October 1 spanning several months, coupled with an emergency supplemental spending bill.

The House will consider 13 suspension bills, including the First Responder Access to Innovative Technologies Act (H.R. 3254), which amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish a process to review applications for specific grants to purchase equipment or systems that do not meet or exceed any applicable national voluntary consensus standards. The Senate plans to vote on their version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024 (S. 2226) this week. First, the Senate will consider several outstanding amendments. The legislation authorizes $876.8 billion in discretionary military and national security spending.

For the remainder of the week, the House will hold several hearings, including an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on the “Generational Learning Loss: How Pandemic School Closures Hurt Students.” In the Senate, the Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on “Reforming the Process for Permitting Electric Transmission Lines, Pipelines, and Energy Production on Federal Lands,” a Senate Budget Committee hearing on “Beyond the Breaking Point: The Fiscal Consequences of Climate Change on Infrastructure;” and an Environment and Public Works Committee hearing examining “Solutions for Single-Use Waste: Expanding Refill and Reuse Infrastructure.”

Bills and Regulations of Interest to You

Bill	Title	Sponsors	Background
H.R. 4686	Bill to create grace period for flood insurance payments	Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL-13)	Establishes a grace period for nonpayment of premiums for flood insurance coverage under the national flood insurance program until the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency implements the option for monthly payment of such premiums, and for other purposes.
S. 2333	Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Response Act	Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA)	Reauthorizes certain programs under the Public Health Service Act with respect to public health security and all-hazards preparedness and response, and for other purposes.
H.R. 4718 & S. 2334	A bill to require each public housing agency to establish and maintain an online portal for tenants and applicants.	Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11) & Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)	Requires each public housing agency to establish and maintain an online portal for tenants and applicants, and for other purposes.
H.R. 4733 & S. 2383	Smoke and Heat Ready Communities Act	Rep Anna Eshoo (D-CA-16) & Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR)	Makes grants to states to make necessary air quality upgrades; help local communities invest in protecting public health from wildfire smoke and extreme heat; and help communities research, develop, and implement plans to help mitigate smoke and extreme heat.
H.R. 4736	Investing in Rural America Act	Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN-7)	Restores and codifies farm credit institutions' eligibility to finance essential rural facilities in partnership with local lenders and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Community Facilities Loan and Grant Program,
H.R. 4745	Delivering for Rural Seniors Act	Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY-19)	Allows seniors living in rural areas, seniors with disabilities, and those with mobility or transportation issues to receive home delivery services from food banks participating in the Commodity Supplemental Food Program.
S. 2391	National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Extension Act of 2023	Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA)	Prevents the NFIP from expiring on September 30, 2023.
H.R. 4773	Water Infrastructure Enhancement Act of 2023	Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12)	Amends the Public Health Service Act to fund detection and testing activities, such as wastewater surveillance, to detect synthetic opioids.
S. 2395	Wildlife Innovation and Longevity Driver Reauthorization (WILD) Act	Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE)	Reauthorizes wildlife habitat and conservation programs.

Agency	Title	Proposed Regulation	Comment Deadline
FEMA	Community Disaster Resilience Zones and the National Risk Index	FEMA is reviewing the input on implementation of Community Disaster Resilience Zones Act of 2022 for potential improvements to FEMA’s resilience zones.	July 25, 2023
FAA	Noise Policy Review	The FAA is reviewing our noise policy as part of our ongoing commitment to address aircraft noise.	July 31, 2023
EPA	Preventing Plastic Pollution	The EPA attempts to provide innovative approaches necessary to reduce and recover plastic materials and improve economic, social, and environmental impacts.	July 31, 2023 (Extended from original June 16)
IRS	Direct Pay & Transferability Mechanisms	The IRS issued proposed regulations on direct pay and transferability mechanisms that will help local governments and other eligible entities access clean energy tax credits.	August 14, 2023
Army Corps of Engineers	Pilot Program for Continuing Authority Projects in Small or Disadvantaged Communities	The Corps is requesting proposals for the pilot program for carrying out projects under a continuing authority program for economically disadvantaged communities.	August 21, 2023