Both the House and Senate are back in session today after the Thanksgiving break. The House will be in session for just 16 legislative days before the January 19th first government funding deadline and lawmakers return this week to a long to-do list. In a Dear Colleague letter, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) outlined his plan for the final work period of the first session of the 118th Congress, which includes negotiations on long-term government funding, the national security supplemental, the National Defense Authorization Act and confirming more of President Joe Biden’s nominees.
In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) has said that the chamber intends to continue work on the outstanding fiscal 2024 spending bills which he needs to pass with only Republican votes. The conference is so divided that he had to pull several appropriations measures before Thanksgiving and send members home earlier than planned. For the current week, no appropriations bills are on the House schedule, leaving the chamber less than two full weeks to pass any before its scheduled adjournment. Lawmakers also have until December 31st to reauthorize the FAA but they must clear several hurdles, including senators finding common ground on a pilot training issue, before both chambers would then need to pass a compromise reauthorization measure or pass an FAA authorization extension, which could ride on another year-end bill.
For today, the Senate is expected to consider the nomination of Jeffrey M. Bryan to be United States District Judge for the District of Minnesota, Margaret M. Garnett to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York and Jose Javier Rodriguez to be an Assistant Secretary of Labor.
The House reconvened at 2:00 P.M. and is expected to consider nine bills out of the Small Business and Foreign Affairs Committees including H.R. 4667 – RECLAIM Taxpayer Funds Act.
