What to know about the 4 urgent issues facing Congress right now
From a discount internet program and aviation safety legislation to the farm bill and Baltimore bridge rebuild, these items will need to be addressed with bipartisan buy-in.
The House returns to Washington this evening after a one-week recess with several issues awaiting the lower chamber.
National headlines are sure to focus on whether Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) will start the clock tower a vote to remove Mike Johnson (R-La.) as speaker for the unspeakable acts of funding the federal government and providing aid to US friends and allies, including Ukraine. But members from both parties are skeptical there’s a bite behind the conservative firebrand’s bark, with New Democrat Coalition Chair Annie Kuster (D-N.H.) telling Once Upon a Hill before the recess she thought Greene a “paper tiger.”
Plus, MTG may have miscalculated by announcing her ouster plan without first consolidating the votes actually to make it happen. But even if she does trigger the motion to vacate, Johnson will likely receive a lifeline from enough Democrats to stay in his position for now. (I wrote about why a few weeks ago for COURIER.
As protests against the war in Gaza disrupt college campuses across the country and antisemites look to exploit the public attention the primarily peaceful demonstrations have generated, House Republican leadership is also expected this week to bring legislation to the floor that would require the Education Department to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism when enforcing laws and rules against discrimination in education programs. House Democratic leadership is recommending members vote against the bill—although if the past is prologue, then it will likely split Democrats as US-Israel policy remains a wedge issue for the party.
Meanwhile, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries(D-N.Y.) told OUAH the day before the foreign aid bill passed that his caucus would continue to seek bipartisan common ground with their Republican colleagues to improve the American people's lives.
“We look forward to continuing to try to do just that with respect to the farm bill, aviation safety and making sure we fully fund the Affordable Connectivity Program so that we can maintain internet access to vulnerable communities all across the country, including in inner-city America, small-town America, rural America and the heartland of America.”
Keep reading for the latest details from my reporting on where each of these priorities stand.
Popular internet affordability program hangs in the balance
With funding set to lapse tomorrow, all signs point to Congress allowing the Affordable Connectivity Program to expire without an extension.
This is dreadful news for the 23 million households who rely on the monthly $30 discounts to get internet service to participate in school and work, access health care, connect with loved ones and express their creativity.
In the House, Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) is the lead sponsor of a bill that would extend funding for five months–through the end of the fiscal year, which ends on Sep. 30.
“We’ve done so much in closing the digital divide and we know how important it is for all families,” Clarke told OUAH. “If you’re not in a position financially to be able to stay online, you’re basically excommunicated from civil society and so we need to be able to provide just this cushion to help people make the decisions to feed their families as well as stay online.”
Clarke introduced what’s known as a discharge petition earlier this month that would force a vote on her bill without approval from House Republican Leadership.
Leader Jeffries told OUAH he strongly supported Clarke’s petition and the extension bill, which currently has 228 co-sponsors–206 Democrats and 22 Republicans—for those counting. Due to six vacant seats, the magic number for final passage in the House is 215.
“That’s a good thing. That’s a win for everyone,” he said of the bipartisan support of the bill and popularity of the program. “One way or another, we have to get the bill to the floor.”
In the Senate, Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) told OUAH he’s working hard to keep the ACP up and running, but figuring out a legislative vehicle to attach an extension is among the challenges.
“Some senators have concerns about making it more efficient and I want to work with them on that,” he added. “What I’m doing now is getting the word out about how this is going to affect four millions veterans so a lot of my colleagues are really mindful of that.”
The White House hosted a call with reporters earlier this month featuring Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough and Wounded Warrior Project CEO Walter Piatt to highlight that nearly half of the 23 million households enrolled in the ACP are military families.
Despite the bipartisan buy-in, Rep. Marc Veasey(D-Texas) is skeptical that House Republicans want to save the program.
“I don’t think there’s a lot of support within the Republican conference to extend,” he told me “I definitely don’t think it’s a priority for them, which is sad and surprising considering how many rural constituencies have benefited from this—more rural constituents than urban constituents, so they’re turning their back on their own people.”
A spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) did not respond to a request for comment.
Cynthia Wallace, the executive director of the New Rural Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing voter participation among young and marginalized residents in rural counties, told OUAH that nearly 40,000 rural North Carolinians would risk losing coverage if the ACP expires.
“This means kids not having access to the internet to do their schoolwork. This means jobs. This is economic access because a lot of people work like we’re doing right now and that has helped them secure jobs,” she said. “So this would be just detrimental to rural communities and devastating if they don’t fulfill the funding for it.”
The ACP was created with $14.2 billion from the bipartisan infrastructure law President Biden signed in late 2021. In addition to the $30 subsidies to low-income households, the program also provided monthly $75 discounts to households on tribal lands. Additionally, eligible households qualified for a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer or tablet from participating providers.
Enrollment in the program has been frozen since February. Households have received two to three notices announcing that the program is in a wind-down phase and will be ending. Once their ACP dollars run out tomorrow, they will have to work with their internet provider to get uninterrupted service moving forward.
A White House official said the administration is encouraging providers to take steps to keep their customers connected with low-cost or no-cost plans or provide discounts to defray the impact of the funding lapse.
Transportation leaders unveil compromise aviation safety bill
The next major legislative deadline is next Friday when authorization for the Federal Aviation Administration expires.
Senate and House negotiators released bill text and a section-by-section breakdown early this morning—the result of months of painstaking negotiations that required Congress to punt the FAA bill twice beyond its original fall deadline last year.
“The American people deserve nothing less than the safest and most efficient aerospace system in the world,” Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Ranking Member Ted Cruz(R-Texas) said in a joint statement with House Transportation Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-Wash.). “And to that end, our bill provides critical safety enhancements, grows America’s aviation workforce, invests in infrastructure at airports of all sizes, sets clear priorities for advancing aviation solutions, improves the flying public’s travel experience and ensures a healthy general aviation sector for years to come.”
The leaders added they looked forward to quickly moving the agreement through both chambers. Sen. Schumer has scheduled the first procedural vote in the Senate on the must-pass legislation for this week.
Keep an eye out for backlash against the bill from Maryland and Virginia lawmakers, though: The final bill includes five additional round-trip flights out of Reagan National Airport (DCA) in the nation’s capital, a provision the House rejected last year but that that the Senate supported. DMV-area members argue DCA is already overburdened enough without the added flight slots.
The bill comes amid a high-profile series of averted collisions, Boeing 737 MAX crashes, and groundings. Despite public perceptions around flying, more than seven in 10 Americans are at least somewhat satisfied with air travel, according to a poll conducted in early January by Airlines for America and released last month.
The House Transportation Committee unanimously approved its version of the reauthorization bill by a 63–0 vote last year. It included provisions to improve FAA operations, encourage aviation innovation, and enhance the passenger experience. The Senate Commerce Committee introduced its own FAA reauthorization bill last year, too, but it pulled it before over disputes over how pilot training hours were valued.
The FAA is the largest transportation agency in the US government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the nation as well as over surrounding international waters. Every five years, the reauthorization bill gives members a chance to resolve problems for air travel workers and consumers.
Top House Ag Republican eyes Memorial Day farm bill release date
After FAA reauthorization, the farm bill and 2025 government funding are the two final must-pass measures before the November election. Lawmakers will likely punt the latter item until control of the White House and Congress are resolved this fall. But House Agriculture Committee Chair GT Thompson (R-Penn.) said he would release a farm bill draft and hold a markup before Memorial Day.
The farm bill is the primary food and agriculture law that prevents critical programs from nutrition assistance from expiring. Negotiations for the sprawling legislation can often become contentious. But talks on the latest version reflect, particularly in the House, the skyrocketing distrust between the parties. House Agriculture Democrats have expressed skepticism that their counteroffers would be considered in good faith and their Republican counterparts have claimed the other side is too quick to reject GOP proposals.
“For this farm bill, House Republicans are abandoning bipartisanship to follow the same partisan ideologies strategy that led to the failures of farm bills on the House floor in 2014 and 2018,” House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member David Scott (D-Ga.) wrote earlier this month in an op-ed for Agri-Pulse. “They continue to insist, as reiterated in Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson’s recent op-ed on draconian cuts to future SNAP benefits, cuts which I have repeatedly warned him jeopardize Democratic support for his farm bill. Sadly, my warnings have fallen on deaf ears.”
Among the thorniest sticky points is whether there will be restrictions on the model that determines benefits for food-stamp programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Democrats oppose this proposal because it would adversely impact maximum benefit levels in future years.
Another dispute is over a Republican proposal to fund changes to commodity programs and crop insurance with money from climate provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act, another idea Democrats, including Senate Agriculture Chair Debbie Stabenow, oppose.
Ultimately, House Ag Dems want Republicans to find new revenue streams for the farm bill instead of pulling money that’s already been appropriated in other legislation.
“Without a doubt the Committee will markup the 2024 farm bill by Memorial Day,” Ben Goldey, a spokesperson for Thompson, said in a statement to OUAH. “Chairman Thompson’s plan does not reduce, impact, or change anyone’s benefits. In fact, it protects the program from future unilateral expansions and unilateral decimations.”
SNAP was at the center of negotiations between House Republicans and the White House last year. In the final agreement between President Biden and then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to raise the debt limit, GOP negotiators secured SNAP work requirements for childless people under 54 and limited the number of months they can receive benefits within a defined period.
However, veterans, unhoused people, and people transitioning out of foster care are exempt from the work requirements, which could result in an expansion of SNAP. House conservatives have indicated their desire for deeper cuts to the program since then.
In addition to SNAP accessibility, advocacy groups are largely focused on two other areas: Climate action and worker protection.
Congress looks to shoulder burden of Baltimore bridge rebuild
And finally, although Jeffries didn’t mention it in his response to me, I’m told Congress will continue to debate the best path forward to rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed in Baltimore last month.
Democratic Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland made the rounds on Capitol Hill earlier this month to detail the immediate and long-term needs of members from his congressional delegation and House leadership.
OUAH caught up with Moore coming out of Jeffries’ suite who said the Democratic leader has been supportive of this early rebuilding efforts.
“I’m grateful because speaking with the leader and also other members of Congress who are just continuing to share the importance of what the bridge means not just in Maryland, but what the bridge means to this country—economically. when it comes to the psychology of this country,” he added.
President Biden, who was briefed on the disaster within hours and days later, called on Congress to fully fund the replacement bridge. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also urged Congress to provide funding for a replacement bridge. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that it was the federal government’s responsibility to do so.
Despite the fact that House conservatives have delayed the most pressing matters this Congress has faced to date, Moore expressed confidence lawmakers would rise to the occasion.
“We have six individuals who we lost in Maryland—it’s do we make sure that we’re gonna honor that and at the same time honor the fact that there are tens of thousands of people whose work rely on the port? How do we honor the fact that we have a port that is responsible for about $70 billion of economic activity not just to the state but to this country?” Moore said. “How do we honor the fact that this is a port that is the largest port in the country for new cars and heavy trucks and agricultural supplies? How do we honor the fact that we have a bridge that is indispensable to port operations? This is not partisan. This is a patriotic responsibility that we get this right collectively.”
The far-right House Freedom Caucus issued a statement listing demands for their support of funding for a replacement bridge, including that the federal government seek maximum liability from the shipping companies upfront.
But Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) vehemently disagreed with waiting for the legal process to play out before Congress took action.
“We’re not going to delay opening our channel or rebuilding our bridge with the lengthy process that may take,” the Baltimore native said during a press conference days after the collapse.
The bridge collapsed after the Dali container ship struck one of its piers, blocking most shipping to and from the Port of Baltimore. Four members of a maintenance crew working on the roadway were killed with another two presumed dead. Two people were rescued from the Patapsco River—one had no injuries, while the other was transported to the hospital in critical condition.
A Congressional Research Service report said that replacement bridges can qualify for an exemption under the National Environmental Policy Act that would accelerate regulatory review and project delivery. According to the report, up to 100 percent of the cost to replace the bridge could be offset if Congress makes an exception under the Federal Highway Administration’s Emergency Relief Program. The Maryland congressional delegation introduced House and Senate bills that would formalize the exception earlier this month.
State and federal officials agree that the rebuild will only be as strong as their partnership.
“It’s been so important because it highlights the fact that what happened [last month] was not a catastrophe for us, it was a catastrophe for this country,” he said. “And so knowing that this rebuild is gonna be one that will be done together, it means everything to us.”