Here’s a look at how area members of Congress voted over the previous week.
In addition to roll call votes this week, the House also passed the Fort Frederica National Monument Boundary Expansion Act (H.R. 494), to expand the boundary of Fort Frederica National Monument in Georgia; and the Email Privacy Act (H.R. 387), to update the privacy protections for electronic communications information that is stored by third-party service providers in order to protect consumer privacy interests while meeting law enforcement needs.
House votes
Flaring methane from federal oil wells: The House has passed a resolution (H.J. Res 36), sponsored by Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, stating disapproval of a Bureau of Land Management rule restricting the venting and flaring of methane from natural gas and oil wells on federal lands. Bishop said the rule, which took effect on Jan. 17, was designed to stop hydrocarbon production on the lands, with a resulting increase in energy costs and loss of revenue to fund essential government services. A resolution opponent, Rep. Alan S. Lowenthal, D-Calif., said it “would waste resources, waste money, pollute our air, and worsen the impacts of climate change.” The vote, on Feb. 3, was 221 yeas to 191 nays.
YEAS: Buck R-CO (4th); NAYS: Perlmutter D-CO (7th), Polis D-CO (2nd).
Rule for use of BLM lands: The House has passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 44), sponsored by Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wy., stating disapproval of an Interior Department rule regarding plans to use land under the Bureau of Land Management’s control. Cheney said the rule, known as BLM Planning 2.0, would have a devastating impact on Western communities by degrading their ability to help determine the use of federal lands their economies rely on. A resolution opponent, Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said the rule merely sought “to make public land management more transparent and efficient by enhancing opportunities for public input and utilizing actual science.” The vote, on Feb. 7, was 234 yeas to 186 nays.
YEAS: Buck; NAYS: Perlmutter, Polis.
Education oversight: The House has passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 57), sponsored by Rep. Todd Rokita, R-Ind., stating disapproval of an Education Department rule setting out accountability requirements for state education plans. Rokita said the rule gave the federal government excessive control over primary education, and voiding it would appropriately return education responsibility to state legislators, superintendents, and other local officials. A resolution opponent, Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., said the rule upheld the core principle of civil rights and the ability of all children to receive a good education. The vote, on Feb. 7, was 234 yeas to 190 nays.
YEAS: Buck; NAYS: Perlmutter, Polis.
Oversight of teacher preparation: The House has passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 58), sponsored by Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., stating disapproval of an Education Department rule that tied agency grants to evaluations of the adequacy of a state’s teacher preparation program. Guthrie said the rule sought to unilaterally impose a “federal mandate for teacher evaluations that Congress explicitly rejected with the Every Student Succeeds Act” it passed in 2016. A resolution opponent, Rep. Susan A. Davis, D-Calif., said it “undoes years of hard work on both sides of the aisle to develop vital safeguards that ensure transparency and quality in teacher preparation programs.” The vote, on Feb. 7, was 240 yeas to 181 nays.
YEAS: Buck, Perlmutter; NAYS: Polis.
Senate votes
Resource companies and government payments: The Senate has passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 41), sponsored by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., voiding a Securities and Exchange Commission rule requiring fossil fuel, mining, and other resource extraction companies to disclose production-related payments such as taxes they make to foreign governments. A resolution supporter, Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, questioned claims that payment disclosures would reduce government corruption, and said complying with the disclosure requirement would cost U.S. resources companies up to $590 million annually. A resolution opponent, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, called payments transparency “essential to combating waste, fraud, corruption, and mismanagement.” The vote, on Feb. 3, was 52 yeas to 47 nays.
YEAS: Gardner R-CO; NAYS: Bennet D-CO.
Education secretary: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Elisabeth Prince DeVos to serve as Education Secretary. A supporter, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said DeVos, given her experience in advancing public charter schools and other education reforms, would help make sure “that every single ZIP Code in America has a quality choice for education.” An opponent, Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., cited his belief that DeVos had “a lack of total commitment to public education.” The vote, on Feb. 7, was 50 yeas to 50 nays, with a 51st decisive yea vote cast by Vice President Mike Pence.
YEAS: Gardner; NAYS: Bennet.
Suspending speaking privileges: The Senate suspended the floor speaking privileges of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., for violating a Senate rule against impugning the motives and conduct of Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., in debating Sessions’ nomination for Attorney General. A supporter of the suspension, Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, said “the rules are very clear that you don’t impugn another senator,” either in your own words or by quoting another person. An opponent of the suspension, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called it “another example of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle escalating the partisanship and further decreasing comity in the Senate.” The vote to sustain the suspension, on Feb. 7, was 49 yeas to 43 nays.
YEAS: Gardner R-CO; NAYS: Bennet D-CO.
Attorney general: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Jeff Sessions, formerly a Republican senator from Alabama, as Attorney General. A supporter, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., called Sessions “a man steeped in the law” from his time as a federal attorney and Alabama’s attorney general, and predicted that Sessions would appropriately treat foreign terrorists under the law of war, not domestic criminal law. An opponent, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., claimed Sessions “has displayed open hostility to the rights of all Americans.” The vote, on Feb. 8, was 52 yeas to 47 nays.
YEAS: Gardner; NAYS: Bennet.
Health and Human Services: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Dr. Tom Price, formerly a Republican representative from Georgia, to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., cited Price’s experience as a physician, state legislator and member of the House, as giving him wide-ranging expertise that Price will use to repair the failings of health care reform and “move toward truly patient-centered health care.” An opponent, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., criticized Price for proposing to turn Medicare into a voucher program and lacking a commitment to the basic goals of Medicare and Medicaid. The vote, on Feb. 9, was 52 yeas to 47 nays.
YEAS: Gardner; NAYS: Bennet.
Debating treasury nominee: The Senate has approved a cloture motion to end debate on the nomination of Steven T. Mnuchin to serve as Treasury Secretary. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Mnuchin was “smart, capable, and he has impressive private sector experience” to apply toward shaping more effective regulations at the Treasury Department. An opponent, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Mnuchin had “outright lied” in committee hearings examining his nomination, and, in his time as CEO of the OneWest bank, had approved erroneous foreclosures of many homeowners in Ohio and elsewhere. The vote, on Feb. 9, was 53 yeas to 46 nays.
YEAS: Gardner; NAYS: Bennet.
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