Month: June 2016

Financial Services Report

Posted on by Thornrun

Our Take

Starting last Wednesday afternoon and stretching all the way through the next 25 hours, the House of Representatives ground to a halt, as House Democrats staged a sit-in to express their frustrations with the lack of a vote on their proposal to prevent individuals on the “no fly list” from being able to purchase handguns.   While the event was characterized as an insurrection or a publicity stunt depending on one’s political views, it was certainly a historic event.   Regardless of whether you agree with the motives or the methods of the Democrats efforts, it was clear that the chaos of the sit-in, and the visible frustration of House Democrats, dovetailed perfectly with the thesis of a recent article from The Atlantic entitled, How American Politics Went Crazy, which outlines how structural and social changes have resulted in a Congress, and in fact an entire political system, that is disintegrating before our eyes. 

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This Week on the Hill: Zika, Collins Gun Proposal, Puerto Rico, GMOs in Senate before July 4 Recess

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With the House already on recess for the July 4 holiday, the Senate will begin the week with a noncontroversial judicial confirmation before moving on to more contentious debates on spending bills and Puerto Rico debt relief legislation. A vote is expected this afternoon on the nomination of Robert Rossiter, Jr. to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Nebraska as the upper chamber begins to wind down its consideration of confirmations ahead of this November’s elections.

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

In Washington and abroad, last week brought unprecedented action that caught most political analysts by surprise. On Thursday, the United Kingdom (UK) shocked the world by voting to leave the European Union (EU) in a highly anticipated public referendum. The move brought turmoil to global financial markets, forced British Prime Minister David Cameron to announce his resignation, and has induced renewed calls in Scotland for independence from the UK. Although negotiations for the UK to formally leave the world’s largest economic and political union will take years, the referendum’s result is likely to have cascading effects on both sides of the Atlantic and could play a role in November’s general elections in the United States.

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Today on the Hill: Dem Sit-In Forces Early House Recess; Zika Conference Report Approved

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With House Democrats staging a sit-in on the well of the House floor to attempt to force votes on gun control proposals, Republican leaders elected to formally adjourn the chamber for the week. The House is not scheduled to be in session next week, meaning that the next action legislative action for House lawmakers may be delayed until after the July 4 holiday. Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), known for his critical role in the Civil Rights Movement, is leading Democrats in the demonstration on the House floor after the Senate voted down gun control proposals that were forced by a 15-hour filibuster from Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) last week. The protesting lawmakers want votes on two bills: H.R. 1217, which would establish background-check requirements for gun show purchases, and H.R. 1076, which would prohibit individuals on the FBI’s terrorist watch list from being able to purchase guns.  

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Rosenstock: Warren More Effective for Clinton Campaign in Senate than as VP

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This morning, Politico published an article highlighting the skepticism of some political analysts to the possiblity that liberal firebrand Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) would be a wise choice as Vice-President for presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. While some on Wall Street have concerns over Warren's record as a fierce critic of the financial services industry, TRP's Jason Rosenstock asserted that the Massachusetts senator would be more of an asset to the Clinton campaign and Democratic Party by remaining in the Senate. 

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Financial Services Report

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Looking Ahead

Near Term

  • The Senate is expected to take up a proposal on gun control in response to the the mass shooting in Orlando and after Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) held a 15-hour filibuster on the subject last week.   The vote will be part of four amendments to pending Commerce-Justice-Science spending legislation (H.R.2578).
  • The House is scheduled to debate the fiscal 2017 Financial Services spending bill (H.R. 5485), which includes decreases in funding for both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The bill also would also block certain requirements set out by the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law, notably including rebukes of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) payday lending rule and adjustments to the Financial Stability Oversight Council’s (FSOC) systemically important financial institution designation process.
  • The House is also take up an override vote of President Barack Obama’s veto of a resolution (H.J. Res. 88) that would nullify the Department of Labor’s rule on the fiduciary duties of investment advisers, though they are unlikely to get the sufficient number of votes to sustain a veto.
  • Fed Chair Janet Yellen makes her semi-annual trek up the Hill to testify before the House and Senate Banking Committees this week.  The appearance comes after the Fed’s recent announcement to keep interest rates the same, as well as a recent NPRM on new regulations on insurance companies.  We also anticipate that questions about the impact of a potential “Brexit” on the global economy could be in the mix.
  • The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) will meet this week in a highly anticipated meeting on insurance rules and a review of the annual re-evaluation of the designations of nonbank financial companies. 

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Health Policy Report

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The Week in Review

After consideration of dozens of amendments, House lawmakers approved defense appropriations legislation (H.R. 5293) on Thursday by a vote of 282-138. The bill provides $517.1 billion of funding to defense programs, with another $58 billion allocated to the Overseas Contingency Operations account for combat operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and other terrorist organizations. House lawmakers also passed a measure that would expand public access to federal government records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (S. 337) and another that would prohibit the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from requiring tax-exempt organizations to disclose their donors. In response to the Orlando attacks, the House also re-approved a legislative package (H.R. 5471) dedicated to combatting violent extremism by directing the Department of Homeland Security to improve coordination of intelligence. 

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Today on the Hill: Defense and CJS Approps to Include Gun Control, Privacy Fights

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Two major spending bills will dominate action in Congress today, with the House set to work through a series of amendments on the fiscal 2017 defense appropriations measure (H.R. 5293), and the Senate moving on to the Commerce-Justice-Science spending bill (H.R. 2578). House lawmakers will be working through nearly 75 proposals for the defense measure, including many that were already considered when the chamber passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) last month. Some of the amendments will likely draw heated debates on long-standing issues including the surveillance operations of the National Security Agency (NSA) and whether military enlistees must be provided with American-made running shoes.

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Financial Services Report

Posted on by Thornrun

Looking Ahead

Near Term

  • SEC Chair White testifies before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday.
  • The House Financial Services Committee will mark-up a slew of bills on Wednesday.

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This Week on the Hill: Policy Riders Threaten Spending Bills in Both Chambers

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Expect heated debates over policy riders for fiscal 2017 spending bills in both chambers this week, particularly ones related to LGBT rights and terrorism after this weekend’s mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) has worked to circumnavigate the divides that often plague the appropriations process, but that strategy faces a real test this week as the House considers the $517.1 billion defense spending legislation (H.R. 5293). Republican leaders in the chamber will likely try to persuade more conservative members of their caucus to support a rule that would limit the amendments process, as Democrats have suggested they will oppose such a move.

 

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