Along with roll call votes last week, the House also passed the Federal Employee Antidiscrimination Act (H.R. 702), to strengthen federal antidiscrimination laws enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and expand accountability within the federal government; passed the FDA Reauthorization Act (H.R. 2430), to revise and extend the user-fee programs for prescription drugs, medical devices, generic drugs, and biosimilar biological products; and passed the Enhancing Detection of Human Trafficking Act (H.R. 2664), to direct the training of certain Labor Department personnel on how to effectively detect and assist law enforcement in preventing human trafficking.
HOUSE VOTES
PHYSICIANS AND CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES: The House has passed the Medical Controlled Substances Transportation Act (H.R. 1492), sponsored by Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas. The bill would state that medical practitioners licensed by the Drug Enforcement Administration are authorized to transport controlled substances as part of their work duties. Sessions said clarifying that doctors, such as physicians for sports teams, can legally carry medical substances for work purposes when traveling was needed to ensure that the doctors can adequately care for athletes and others. The vote, on July 12, was 416 yeas to 2 nays.
YEAS: Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, Bruce Poliquin, R-2nd District
CALIFORNIA WATER MANAGEMENT: The House has passed the Gaining Responsibility on Water Act (H.R. 23), sponsored by Rep. David G. Valadao, R-Calif. The bill would adopt various measures aimed at increasing the supply to farmers of water from California’s Central Valley Project. Valadao said Central Valley farmers who have been deprived of water from the Project needed a “good, sound policy” that ensures they have enough water to grow crops that are vital to the country’s food supply. A bill opponent, Rep. Doris O. Matsui, D-Calif., said it would not give farmers a secure supply of water, but would weaken California’s environment and weaken the state’s ability to manage its own water. The vote, on July 12, was 230 yeas to 190 nays.
NAYS: Pingree
YEAS: Poliquin
STUDYING NUCLEAR WEAPONS: The House has passed an amendment sponsored by Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 (H.R.2810). The amendment would authorize the Defense Department to expand the gathering of information on the costs of modernizing the country’s stockpile of nuclear weapons beyond the currently required 10-year window. Rogers called the expansion a sensible middle ground between a 10-year standard and the 30-year standard some in Congress have proposed. The vote, on July 13, was 253 yeas to 172 nays.
NAYS: Pingree
YEAS: Poliquin
SENATE VOTES
REGULATORY AGENCIES: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Neomi Rao to serve as Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Management and Budget. Rao, currently a law professor at George Mason University and expert on the administrative state, had served as a counsel in the George W. Bush administration, as a Senate committee counsel, and as a clerk to federal judges. An opponent, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., claimed that if confirmed, Rao “will head the Trump administration’s efforts to toss out the rules big businesses don’t like” and that protect consumers. The vote, on July 10, was 54 yeas to 41 nays.
YEAS: Susan Collins, R-Maine, Angus King, I-Maine
IDAHO DISTRICT JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of David C. Nye to serve as a judge on the U.S. district court for Idaho. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., cited Nye’s unanimous support in the Senate. However, McConnell also criticized Senate Democrats for forcing procedural hurdles to the Senate’s timely confirmation of Nye and other appointees of President Trump. The vote, on July 12, was unanimous with 100 yeas.
YEAS: Collins, King
AMBASSADOR TO JAPAN: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of William Francis Hagerty IV to serve as U.S. ambassador to Japan. A supporter, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., cited Hagerty’s many years of business experience working in Japan and helping convince Japanese firms to invest billions of dollars in Tennessee in particular. The vote, on July 13, was 86 yeas to 12 nays.
YEAS: Collins, King
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