What’s Happening in Washington: Week of May 1st, 2023
Headlines to Know:
Debt Ceiling Looms Overhead
President Joe Biden invited the “big four” congressional leaders to a meeting at the White House next week after the federal government’s debt managers warned Congress on Monday that lawmakers may have even less time than they thought to raise the statutory borrowing cap. The government may be unable to pay its bills by early June if Congress doesn’t raise the statutory debt limit before then, Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said Monday.
Sen. Ben Cardin Retires; Opens 2024 Vacancy
Sen. Ben Cardin, first elected to the Senate in 2006, has announced that he will not seek re-election in 2024. The announcement immediately spurred action among Maryland elected officials; a competitive Democratic primary is expected. While the state leans blue, the announcement also opens the door for former Governor Larry Hogan to consider a bid. While the former governor has ruled out a presidential run, there is buzz surrounding a Senate run. If he were to enter, both Maryland and West Virginia would become competitive races in a presidential election year.
Federal Agency Case Picked up by SCOTUS
The Supreme Court agreed Monday to reconsider long held precedent and decide whether to significantly scale back on the power of federal agencies in a case that can impact everything from how the government addresses everything from climate change to public health to immigration. The justices announced they would take up an appeal from herring fishermen in the Atlantic who say the National Marine Fisheries Service does not have the authority to require them to pay the salaries of government monitors who ride aboard the fishing vessels. Their action means they will reconsider a 1984 case – Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council – that sets forward factors to determine when courts should defer to a government agency’s interpretation of the law.
Hearings:
- 5/2/23: Senate Agriculture: Hearings to examine commodity programs, credit, and crop insurance, focusing on producer perspectives on the farm safety net.
- 5/2/23: Senate Energy & Natural Resources: Hearings to examine the President’s proposed budget request for fiscal year 2024 for the Department of the Interior.
- 5/2/23: Senate Armed Services: Hearings to examine the posture of the Department of the Air Force in review of the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year 2024 and the Future Years Defense Program
- 5/2/23: Senate HELP: Business meeting to consider S.1067, to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to citizen petitions, S.1114, to amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
- 5/2/23: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Hearings to examine improving access to Federal grants for underserved communities.
- 5/2/23: Senate Appropriations: Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2024 for the Army.
- 5/2/23: Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Hearings to examine reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, focusing on improving community resilience.
- 5/2/23: Senate Judiciary: Hearings to examine Supreme Court ethics reform.
- 5/2/23: Hearings to examine advancing security and prosperity through international conservation.
- 5/2/23: House Natural Resources: Oversight Field Hearing titled “Examining the Mineral Wealth of Northern Minnesota.”
- 5/2/23: Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Hearings to examine rural housing legislation.
- 5/2/23: Senate Foreign Relations: Hearings to examine the President’s proposed budget request for fiscal year 2024 for East Asia and the Pacific.
- 5/2/23: Senate Armed Services: Hearings to examine the current readiness of the Joint Force.
- 5/2/23: Senate Armed Services: Hearings to examine Department of Defense space activities in review of the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year 2024 and the Future Years Defense Program.
- 5/3/23: Senate Environment and Public Works: Hearings to examine the 2024 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers budget and implementation of Water Resources Development Act of 2022.
- 5/3/23: Senate Appropriations: Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2024 for the Department of Energy, including the National Nuclear Security Administration.
- 5/3/23: Senate Finance Committee: Hearings to examine barriers to mental health care, focusing on improving provider directory accuracy to reduce the prevalence of ghost networks.
- 5/3/23: Senate Budget Meeting: Hearings to examine the real cost of fossil fuels.
- 5/3/23: Senate Foreign Relations Committee: Business meeting to consider S.396, to require the Secretary of State to submit an annual report to Congress regarding the ties between criminal gangs and political and economic elites in Haiti
- 5/3/23: Senate Appropriations Committee: Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2024 for the Environmental Protection Agency.
- 5/4/23: Senate Agriculture: Hearings to examine commodity programs, credit, and crop insurance, focusing on industry perspectives on risk management and access to credit.
- 5/4/23: Senate Energy and Natural Resources: An oversight hearing to examine the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
- 5/4/23: Senate Appropriations: Hearings to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2024 for the National Institutes of Health.
- 5/4/23: Senate Budget: Hearings to examine debt limit legislation.
- 5/4/23: Senate HELP Committee: Hearings to examine preparing for the next public health emergency, focusing on reauthorizing the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act.