|
House Speaker John Boehner Announces Retirement
Speaker John Boehner announced his retirement from Congress and
from the Speakership on Friday, September 25. He initially stated that
he would be stepping down in November. However, more recently Boehner
agreed to stay in the role until a candidate is found who can get 218
votes from the Republican House Conference. Currently,
only two GOP members, Florida Representative Daniel Webster and Utah Representative Jason
Chaffetz, are officially running to replace Boehner, but many
more are considering a run or being pushed by others to do so. Many are
working to convince Chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Paul Ryan,
to run. The competition could grow larger by next week, when the House
returns from a weeklong recess. Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s
surprising withdrawal from the race for speaker of the House, a race he
seemed sure to win, came without any warning as House Republicans
were in a closed-door meeting to select their nominee for speaker.
Boehner has committed to move a number of significant pieces of
legislation before he steps down including a long-term highway funding
bill, an increase to the debt ceiling, and an extension of a number of
expiring tax incentives. He will also put up a number of ACA repeal
measures. He was also able to get a clean Continuing Resolution (that
did not include Planned Parenthood defunding language) through the
House with support from Democrats.
Government Shutdown Averted
Congress was able to pass a continuing resolution before the
October 1 deadline, keeping government functions open through December
11. House Republicans voted 91 – 151 for the plan, relying on Democrats
to get it through. McCarthy, Scalise and McHenry voted yes while
Webster, Price, Ross and Sessions voted no. Similarly, spending for
Homeland Security was supported by only 75 Republicans, including
McCarthy, Scalise and McHenry. Bicameral and bipartisan negotiations
have begun in earnest to identify compromises on an omnibus budget
bill.
CMS Seeking Comments on Merit-based Incentive Payment System
On September 28, CMS published a Request for Information in the
Federal Register, asking for comments on a newly created Merit-based
Incentive Payment System (MIPS) for Physicians treating Medicare
patients. Through the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of
2015 (MACRA), MIPS replaces the sustainable growth rate formula. MIPS
will replace the Physician Quality Reporting System, Value Based
Payment Modifier, and the Medicare Electronic Health Record Incentive
Program in 2019. The RFI will also seek opinions on participation in
alternative payment models. Public
comments for the RFI are due on November 2.
ACA Update
A group of bills are making their way through Congress that would
repeal the least popular aspects of the ACA. Measures include a repeal
of the individual and employer mandate, a repeal of the medical device
tax, and a repeal of the “Cadillac Tax.” According to the Joint
Committee on Taxation, while ending the Cadillac Tax would cost $91.1
billion, and repealing the device tax would cost $23.9 billion,
repealing the mandates would raise $147.1 billion (as fewer people
would be enticed to sign onto subsidized health care). Along with a few
other expected increases, the JTC estimates an additional $44.2 billion
over ten years from the measures. The House Ways and Means Committee
marked up budget reconciliation legislative instructions on September
29, and the House Budget Committee approved the legislation on October
9. It was combined with measures out of the Energy & Commerce, and
Education & Workforce Committees. Included is an effort to defund
Planned Parenthood. Through reconciliation, only a simple majority is
required in the Senate, meaning Democrats will be unable to block the
bill. This will be the first time an effort to effectively repeal most
of the ACA will reach the President’s desk. However, the President is
certain to veto this measure, and there is not enough support in
Congress to override it.
EX-IM Bank Supporters Push for Reauthorization Language in Highway
Funding Bill
On October 9, a bipartisan group of House Representatives produced
a rarely used discharge petition to force an EX-IM reauthorization vote
by October 26. The bank’s charter expired for the first time on July 1,
2015. This maneuver is likely to be the best chance supporters of the
bank have at reauthorization. A number of EX-IM bank supporters,
including Senator Johnny Isakson, have been pushing for the inclusion
of reauthorization language in any final long term surface
transportation bill. The Senate’s DRIVE Act has a provision that would
reauthorize the EX-IM bank. However, a vocal group of House
Republicans, including some in leadership, remain generally opposed to
the bank and its charter. Transportation Chair Bill Shuster, Ways and
Means Chair Paul Ryan and Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer are in talks
on an international tax proposal introduced by Senators Schumer and Portman
this summer to keep the Highway Trust Fund Solvent. Majority Leader,
Kevin McCarthy has focused on tackling corporate inversions through
wider tax reform efforts as a possible funding solution.
Obama Signs Six-Month FAA Bill
On September 30, President Obama signed into a law a bill to extend
federal aviation funding, which had been set to expire, until March
2016. The measure was approved by the House on September 28 and
the Senate the following day in an effort to prevent an interruption in
the FAA’s funding. The short extension is meant to give Congress
time to work on more significant reform efforts. Chair of the
Transportation Committee, Bill Shuster, intends to move air traffic
control responsibilities to a non-profit corporation, modeled off of
Canada. NAV Canada is a private corporation, funded by fees paid by
airlines and aviation system users. The President of the National Air
Traffic Controllers Association, Paul Rinaldi, has said he will
consider a proposal to move air traffic control responsibilities out of
the FAA.
Build America Transportation Investment Center Launched
The Department of Transportation has officially launched its Build
America Transportation Investment Center. Its main function is to pair
states and local governments with private investors. The center is also
meant to be a resource for people who need guidance throughout the
federal transportation credit program process.
EPA and NHTSA
Delay Proposed New Truck Emissions Rules
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are putting off
new restrictions on emissions for heavy-duty vehicles to allow
more time for the public to comment on the proposed rules.
The August 31 deadline was pushed back to October 1.
The EPA’s plan calls for tighter carbon dioxide
emission standards, while the NHTSA’s plan would impose fuel
consumption measures. The proposed rule would affect four types of
vehicles: combination tractors; trailers pulled by combination
tractors; heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans; and vocational vehicles
(buses, garbage trucks and concrete mixers.) Phase 1 of this effort
began in 2011, when the EPA and NHTSA developed greenhouse gas emission
and fuel efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles made
from 2014 to 2018. The Phase 2 term runs through 2027.
Per the agencies, the proposed standards are
expected to lower carbon dioxide emissions by about 1 billion metric
tons, cut fuel costs by about $170 billion and reduce oil consumption
by up to 1.8 billion barrels over the lifetime of the vehicles sold
under the program. The expected reductions are nearly equal to
the greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy use by all U.S.
residences in one year, and the total oil savings under the program
would be greater than a year’s worth of U.S. imports from OPEC.
|
