Action Alerts

Ongoing: Make the Most Out of the Independence Day Congressional Recess - Help Get Long Term Services and Supports in Health Care Reform

Major Events Last Week

Transportation

The Department of Transportation sent Congress a more detailed plan to keep surface transportation programs funded through 2011. The federal Highway Trust Fund is expected to run short this summer and additional funding is needed to finance projects already authorized through the end of FY 2010. The proposal would extend the highway and transit authorization for 18 months and borrow $20 billion from the Treasury's general fund. The Senate is expected to take the lead on marking up the proposal in July. Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN) of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is moving forward with a six year reauthorization of the highway and transit bill which has already been marked up by the Highways and Transit Subcommittee.

Major Events Ahead

U. S. Congress

The Congress returns today from its Independence Day recess. New Senator Al Franken (D-MN) will be sworn in and appointed to the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee and the Judiciary Committee. He becomes the 60th Senator to caucus with Democrats.

The Congress now enters a five week work period before the summer recess begins on August 7. In addition to the ongoing work on health care, key issues likely to come up for votes include the Sotomayor nomination to the Supreme Court, climate change legislation and additional attention to Fiscal Year 2010 appropriations bills.

FY 2010 Appropriations

With three months remaining in FY 2009, the Congress is struggling to pass all twelve FY 2010 appropriations on time for the October 1 start of the fiscal year. The House has passed four of its bills, the Senate none. The House is scheduled to vote on four more this week while the Senate hopes to complete action on two. The two appropriations bills of great interest to the disability community - Labor, Health and Human Services and Education and Transportation and Housing and Human Development - have yet to be considered. They are tentatively scheduled for action on the House floor before the summer recess.

Health Care Reform

On Tuesday, the Senate HELP Committee resumes its mark-up of the Affordable Choices Act. The Committee is expected to begin with consideration of the proposal's provisions addressing the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act. Acting Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) reportedly predicted that the Committee will complete the entire mark-up by the end of this week or next week.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) is continuing to negotiate with Committee Republicans to produce a bi-partisan bill that is deficit neutral.

In the House, staff of the Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and Education and Labor Committees are meeting on the Tri-Committee proposal. No mark-up dates have been announced.

As the heavy lifting begins for July, there is less expectation that the Senate will complete all action on health care reform in the next 5 weeks. This is due to a number of factors, including the difficulty of reaching bipartisan consensus, some significant policy differences within the Senate, and the current absence of Senator Kennedy (D-MA), a key leader on health care reform.

Education/ Bullying

On Wednesday, the House Committee on Education and Labor's Subcommittees on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education and Healthy Families and Communities will hold a joint hearing titled, "Strengthening School Safety through Prevention of Bullying." See:
http://edlabor.house.gov/hearings/2009/07/strengthening-school-safety-th.shtml

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If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at acosta@thedpc.org.

Sincerely,

Annie Acosta
Director of Communications and Grassroots
Disability Policy Collaboration