DRIVING THE WEEK:
The House and Senate are both in session this week.
Trump is meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland this morning. Trump and Putin will meet one-on-one, then continue during an expanded bilateral session with U.S. and Russian officials and a working lunch. The two leaders will hold a joint news conference later his morning.
The government faces a July 26 deadline next week to reunite almost 3,000 older kids who were separated from their parents under its "zero-tolerance" immigration policy.
House Republicans are planning a vote this month on a Democrat-led bill that would abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a move that would put Democrats who are divided on the issue on the record - but Democrats are expected to vote against it, viewing the vote as a political ploy by the Republican majority.
As a follow up to Trump’s tariff announcement on May 23, the U.S. Department of Commerce is slated to hold a hearing this Thursday, July 19 on Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 – with the main focus on foreign made autos, light trucks and SUVs posing a risk to national security.
Trump Administration officials announced a new executive task force, established through an executive order signed by Trump, that will bring together different areas of the government to probe and prosecute consumer fraud. Major financial regulatory agencies such as the CFPB and the Securities and Exchange Commission are set to participate in the task force.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will give the Fed’s Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress this week, talking about whether the Fed is seeing enough signs of inflation that will cause it to continue to raise interest rates through the end of the year. Powell appears on Tuesday before the Senate Banking Committee and on Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee.
Speaker Paul Ryan and House Republican leaders are expected to bring two additional spending bills to a vote this week with limited amendments. The two-bill package will include funding for the Interior Department, EPA, IRS, SEC and General Services Administration and is another step forward with the leadership strategy of moving as many of the appropriations bills forward before the September 30 funding deadline and avoiding a shutdown weeks before the midterm elections.
The Senate voted 88-11 to approve a non-binding motion displaying Senators' worries about Trump's trade actions, though the chamber has not voted on a proposal to require congressional approval of duties that the president imposes on national security grounds. Senator Bob Corker (R-TN) led the push for the resolution, which requests that a conference committee include the Congressional approval language in a final compromise spending bill. Look for more moves similar to this in the coming weeks.
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC), a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee, said that he believes lawmakers need to move past efforts to repeal the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act and instead "be forward-looking" to problems that future economic crises could pose. McHenry, who is seen as a possible replacement for outgoing HFS Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), said he also thinks Congress will eventually need to "step in to provide clarity" on regulatory issues surrounding digital currencies - particularly initial coin offerings.
Alabama holds primary runoff elections Tuesday.
U.S. House of Representatives Schedule
Monday, July 16, 2018
5:00 PM | H-313 CAPITOL
Host: Committee on Rules
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
Hearing: Realizing the Benefits of Rural Broadband: Challenges and Solutions
10:00 AM | 2123 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
Hearing: “Examining the Summer Food Service Program"
10:00 AM
Host: Committee on Education and the Workforce | Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education
10:00 AM | 2141 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on the Judiciary
Hearing: Legislative Hearing on Federal Land Bills
10:00 AM | 1324 Longworth House Office Building
Host: Committee on Natural Resources
Hearing: Tribal Energy Resources: Reducing Barriers to Opportunity
10:00 AM | 2247 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on the Interior, Energy, and Environment
10:00 AM | 2154 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on National Security
Hearing: The Future of Fossil: Energy Technologies Leading the Way
10:00 AM | 2318 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Science, Space, and Technology | Subcommittee on Energy
Hearing: Examining State Efforts to Improve Transparency of Health Care Costs for Consumers
10:15 AM | 2322 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
Markup: Subcommittee Vote on H.R. 3128
1:00 PM | 2322 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Environment
1:00 PM | 2154 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Hearing: Achieving Government-Wide Verification of Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses
2:00 PM
Host: Committee on Small Business
Hearing: Hearing entitled “Examining Capital Regimes for Financial Institutions”
2:00 PM | 2128 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Financial Services | Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
3:00 PM
Host: Committee on Rules
Wednesday, July 18, 2018
Hearing: Powering America: The Role of Energy Storage in the Nations Electricity System
9:00 AM | 2322 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Energy
Hearing: Oversight of the Federal Trade Commission 2018
9:15 AM | 2123 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection
Hearing: 2020 Census: Information Technology Preparations
10:00 AM | 2154 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on Government Operations
Hearing: 2020 CENSUS: INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PREPERATIONS
10:00 AM | 2154 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on Information Technology
Hearing: Are We Ready? Recovering from 2017 Disasters and Preparing for the 2018 Hurricane Season
10:00 AM
Host: Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure | Washington, DC
Hearing: Hearing entitled “Monetary Policy and the State of the Economy”
10:00 AM | 2128 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Financial Services | Full Committee
10:45 AM | 1324 Longworth House Office Building
Host: Committee on Natural Resources | Full Committee
11:00 AM
Host: Committee on Small Business
2:00 PM | HVC-210 CAPITOL
Host: Committee on Homeland Security | Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security
Hearing: Hearing entitled “The Future of Money: Digital Currency”
2:00 PM | 2128 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Financial Services | Monetary Policy and Trade
Hearing: Regulatory Divergence: Failure of the Administrative State
2:00 PM | 2154 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Oversight and Government Reform | Subcommittee on Intergovernmental Affairs
Hearing: Current Developments in Central Asia
3:00 PM | 2172 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Foreign Affairs | Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats
Thursday, July 19, 2018
9:00 AM | 1100 Longworth HOB
Host: House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
Hearing: 21st Century Cures Implementation: Examining Mental Health Initiatives
10:00 AM | 2123 Rayburn HOB
Host: Committee on Energy and Commerce | Subcommittee on Health
U.S. SENATE
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Hearings to examine an original bill entitled, "Endangered Species Act Amendments of 2018". |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the Department of the Interior's final list of critical minerals for 2018 and opportunities to strengthen the United States' mineral security. |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
Hearings to examine reducing health care costs, focusing on eliminating excess health care spending and improving quality and value for patients. |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress. |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe |
Hearings to examine Russia's occupation of Georgia and the erosion of the international order. |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
Closed hearings to examine certain intelligence matters. |
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Tuesday, Jul 17, 2018 |
To receive a closed briefing regarding certain intelligence matters. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine supporting economic stability and self-sufficiency as Americans with disabilities and their families age. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine promoting justice for victims of crime, focusing on the Federal investment in DNA analysis. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the Administration's government reorganization proposal. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the nominations of Brian J. Bulatao, of Texas, to be an Under Secretary (Management), and Denise Natali, of New Jersey, to be an Assistant Secretary (Conflict and Stabilization Operations), both of the Department of State. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine sharks. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Finance |
Hearings to examine trade and commerce at United States ports of entry. |
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Wednesday, Jul 18, 2018 |
Hearings to examine S.3060, to repeal section 2141 of the Revised Statutes to remove the prohibition on certain alcohol manufacturing on Indian lands, and S.3168, to amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to make Reclamation Water Settlements Fund permanent. |
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Thursday, Jul 19, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the nominations of Dennis Dean Kirk, of Virginia, to be a Member of the Merit Systems Protection Board, and to be Chairman of the Merit Systems Protection Board, Julia Akins Clark, of Maryland, and Andrew F. Maunz, of Ohio, both to be a Member of the Merit Systems Protection Board, and Carmen Guerricagoitia McLean, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. |
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Thursday, Jul 19, 2018 |
An oversight hearing to examine Administration reorganization and modernization proposals related to the Department of Energy and the Department of the Interior. |
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Thursday, Jul 19, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the nominations of Mary Bridget Neumayr, of Virginia, to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality, and John Fleming, of Louisiana, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. |
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Thursday, Jul 19, 2018 |
Hearings to examine the nominations of Kathleen Laura Kraninger, of Ohio, to be Director, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and Kimberly A. Reed, of West Virginia, to be President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. |
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Thursday, Jul 19, 2018 |
To receive a closed briefing regarding certain intelligence matters. |
