In the House, courtesy of the Office of the Majority Leader:
FLOOR SCHEDULE FOR TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 2009
House Meets At... 10:30 a.m.: Morning Hour
12:00 p.m.: Legislative Business
Unlimited "One Minutes" Per Side
Last Vote Predicted... 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Suspensions (5 Bills)
1) S. 407 - Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2009 (Sen. Akaka – Veterans’ Affairs)
2) H.R. 1172 - To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to include on the Internet website of the Department of Veterans Affairs a list of organizations that provide scholarships to veterans and their survivors (Rep. Boozman – Veterans’ Affairs)
3) H.R. 1016 - Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009 (Rep. Filner – Veterans’ Affairs)
4) H.R. 1211 - Women Veterans Health Care Improvement Act (Rep. Herseth Sandlin – Veterans’ Affairs)
5) H.R. 1777 - Making technical corrections to the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (Rep. George Miller – Education and Labor)
In the Senate, courtesy of the Secretary of the Senate:
Convenes: 10:00am
Morning Business with senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each. The Republicans will control the first 30 minutes and the Majority will control the next 30 minutes.
The Senate will recess from 12:30 until 2:15pm to allow for the weekly caucus luncheons.
We will work on an agreement to consider the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill. If we are able to reach an agreement, we could have votes in relation to the bill during Tuesday's session of the Senate.
Committee events of note:
- Tue., 6/23, 9:30am. House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health: Health Care Reform Draft Proposal, Day 1
- Tue., 6/23, 12pm. House Education & Labor Committee: The Tri-Committee Draft Proposal for Health Care Reform
- Tue., 6/23, 2:30pm. Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee: High-Speed Passenger Rail: How Fast Will It Get Here? Edward G. Rendell, Governor of Pennsylvania, Co-Chair, Building America's Future.
A lot less action on the House floor today than yesterday's This Week in Congress would have indicated. That schedule listed 22 suspensions, but there are only five on the schedule today. Even so, legislative business is scheduled to begin at 12, and the last vote is predicted between 7-8 pm. Five suspensions aren't going to take us that long (they're debated for no longer than 40 minutes each). So either the leadership plans to bring more of them to the floor than are on the schedule, or they've got plans for something else. Unfortunately, that may just be more Republican obstructionism, in the form of annoyance votes like the record-breaking 53 roll calls taken last Thursday. And the obstruction, if it comes, may be about nothing more than making it difficult for House committees to proceed with planned hearings on the one health care draft bill that actually contains a public option.
In the Senate, they'll be... uh... well... trying to figure out what to do. The Travel Promotion bill has stalled, and they've really got to begin work on appropriations bills, but getting either of those two (or indeed any other bill) moving requires stepping back and trying to work out whatever deals it takes to get the Republican dead-enders out of the way.
As a result, the real action tomorrow will be in the committees, with hearings beginning in the House on the Tri-Committee health care draft bill. Be sure to look at the schedule below the fold for links to live video feeds from the committees dealing with the bill today.
In the Committees:
House
Committee | Date | Time | Purpose | View Online? |
Energy & Commerce | Tue., 6/23 | 9:30 a.m. | Subcommittee on Health: Health Care Reform Draft Proposal, Day 1 | Yes |
Natural Resources | Tue., 6/23 | 10:00 a.m. | Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands and Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife: Joint Oversight Field Hearing On "The Impacts Of Climate Change On The Chesapeake Bay" | ? |
Education & Labor | Tue., 6/23 | 12:00 p.m. | The Tri-Committee Draft Proposal for Health Care Reform | Yes |
Appropriations | Tue., 6/23 | 4:00 p.m. | Full Committee Markup - State, Foreign Operations and Military Construction, Veterans Affairs | Yes |
Rules | Tue., 6/23 | 5:00 p.m. | H.R. 2647 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010;H.R. 2892 - Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010 | No |
Senate
Committee | Date | Time | Purpose | View Online? |
Armed Services | Tue., 6/23 | 9:30 a.m. | Subcommittee on Personnel: Closed business meeting to markup those provisions which fall under the subcommittee's jurisdiction of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010. | No |
Appropriations | Tue., 6/23 | 10:00 a.m. | Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: Business meeting to markup proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2010 for the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies. | Yes |
Foreign Relations | Tue., 6/23 | 10:00 a.m. | Confronting Drug Trafficking in West Africa | Yes |
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe | Tue., 6/23 | 10:00 a.m. | Hearings to examine religious liberty, media freedom, and the rule of law in Russia. | No |
Armed Services | Tue., 6/23 | 11:00 a.m. | Subcommittee on AIRLAND: Closed business meeting to markup those provisions which fall under the subcommittee's jurisdiction of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010. | No |
Armed Services | Tue., 6/23 | 2:00 p.m. | Subcommittee on Strategic Forces: Closed business meeting to markup those provisions which fall under the subcommittee's jurisdiction of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010. | No |
Commerce, Science & Transportation | Tue., 6/23 | 2:00 p.m. | Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security: High-Speed Passenger Rail: How Fast Will It Get Here? | Yes |
Select Intelligence | Tue., 6/23 | 2:00 p.m. | Closed hearings to examine certain intelligence matters | No |
Armed Services | Tue., 6/23 | 3:30 p.m. | Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support: Closed business meeting to markup those provisions which fall under the subcommittee's jurisdiction of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010. | No |
Armed Services | Tue., 6/23 | 5:30 p.m. | Subcommittee on Seapower: Closed business meeting to markup those provisions which fall under the subcommittee's jurisdiction of the proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2010. | No |
Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs | Tue., 6/23 | 5:30 p.m. | Type 1 Diabetes Research: Real Progress and Real Hope for a Cure | Yes |