Federal Update
This week, the House has a “Committee Work Week” with no floor votes while the Senate is in recess until July 11. President Joe Biden is in the midst of a high-profile trip to Europe. Biden is participating in a three-day G7 meeting in Bavaria, Germany, that began Sunday. This will be followed by a trip to Madrid for the NATO summit.
Dobbs knocks out Roe: What's next?
It goes without saying that Friday's decision overturning Roe v. Wade will reverberate through politics, health care policy and culture across the United States for a long time to come.
- On the Hill: Besides reacting to the decision, lawmakers pondered a post-Roe agenda. On the one hand, Democrats pushed options such as abolishing the Senate filibuster, codifying Roe v. Wade, expanding the Supreme Court and ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment. On the other, Republicans floated varied federal bans on abortion, be it after 15 weeks of pregnancy, once a heartbeat is detected or simply outright prohibition.
- Among Advocates: They may disagree fervently on the policy, but those on both sides of the abortion debate appeared to mostly agree on one thing — there's uncertainty ahead. Expect chaos in the courts and on the ground.
- In the States: With fundamental changes to federal law very unlikely without scrapping the legislative filibuster, it's likely the states will take the lead on abortion policy in at least the near term. More than half the states are likely to ban abortion in some capacity — a number of them did so immediately after the decision came down. That means abortion access will be heavily restricted for those who can’t travel to states like Minnesota, New York, and California, where abortions are legal. And medication abortions may become more prevalent.
- On Other Issues: Advocates for LGBT causes and others pointed with concern to a passage in a concurring opinion from Justice Clarence Thomas, who urged the court to reconsider its decisions establishing rights to gay marriage and contraception, among others. The liberal justices who dissented Friday warned that the majority's rationale could indeed imperil other unenumerated rights, although Alito — and Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, in a concurring opinion — wrote that it does not "cast doubt" on non-abortion precedents.
House Appropriators Look to Finish Markups
The House floor may be effectively empty this week, but fiscal 2023 spending markups continue. After the full House Appropriations Committee approved six of the 12 annual spending bills last week, it's set to do the same with the remaining six this week. The markups span three days, all at 10 a.m., in 1100 Longworth.
Commerce-Justice-Science (Tuesday)
The $85.7 billion draft bill would increase funds overall by $7.6 billion over current enacted levels. The gun violence bill (S 2938) that President Joe Biden signed Saturday will likely come up at the markup; in subcommittee last week, Republicans said aspects of the spending measure may infringe on gun rights.
Energy-Water (Tuesday)
The bill would provide $56.3 billion, an increase of $3.4 billion over fiscal 2022. Democrats have said it would address drought in Western states and gas prices. The subcommittee's top Republican said he supported it despite concerns over military project funding.
Interior-Environment (Wednesday)
House lawmakers would allocate $44.8 billion under the bill, up $6.8 billion. Democrats tout climate provisions, though some at the subcommittee markup last week asked if they were enough; meantime, the top subcommittee Republican withheld support, partly because the bill did not have an "all of the above" energy strategy.
State-Foreign Operations (Wednesday)
The $64.6 billion draft bill — about $8.5 billion more than the enacted level — would press increases in climate-related assistance to foreign countries. However, the subcommittee's measure would not significantly increase security assistance funding for friendly nations.
Labor-HHS-Education (Thursday)
The overturning of Roe v. Wade will almost certainly affect the debate over what's typically one of the most contentious spending bills, due in part to abortion-related policy riders. The draft bill approved in subcommittee would spend $242.1 billion on the agencies it covers, $28.5 billion more than current levels.
Transportation-HUD (Thursday)
As with other bills, Democrats are pointing to climate-related provisions, saying the bill — which would dole out $90.9 billion, an increase of $9.9 billion — would make U.S. transportation and housing systems more resilient on that front. Republicans at the subcommittee markup said it would spend too much.
On the Radar: NATO Questions
Lawmakers in both parties are signaling that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan should not expect them to sweeten the pot as he seeks concessions in return for dropping his objections to Sweden and Finland joining NATO.
Erdogan’s objections to the Nordic countries joining the Western military alliance have injected some high-stakes drama in the lead-up to this week’s NATO summit in Madrid, which President Joe Biden will attend. Erdogan's grievance is ostensibly over the two wealthy democracies’ ties to a Kurdish group that Turkey contends is linked to terrorists.
Important Dates to Remember
- August 9, 2022: Primary Election & First Congressional District Special Election
- November 8, 2022: General Election
Please reach out to any of the Larkin Hoffman Government Relations team members with any questions.
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