Outlook for This Week in the Nation’s Capital
Congress. The House and Senate are both in session this week. Their to-do list includes continuing their work on FY22 appropriations, the reconciliation bill, election reform, and the United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) conference negotiations. The House also plans to vote on numerous bills from the Oversight and Reform Committee and to start floor proceedings on their version of USICA. Hearings for the week include examining nominations, the mental health and substance use disorders crises, the bipartisan infrastructure bill’s broadband programs, domestic recycling and composting programs, automated vehicles, clean energy, and 5G deployment and aviation safety.
Budget and Appropriations. House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders have reportedly made progress in their omnibus negotiations and are said to be nearing an agreement on top-line spending numbers. However, with only a couple of weeks to go before the current continuing resolution (CR) expires on February 18, Congress may end up needing to pass another short-term CR since they have not yet reached an agreement and are still discussing policy riders. If this continues to be the case, the next CR will likely only be for around a week or so. Separately, the Senate Budget Committee plans to hold a hearing this week to examine Acting Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Shalanda Young’s nomination to be the OMB director.
USICA….
