The Senate Appropriations Committee reported out five more FY20 spending bills this week leaving only the Labor HHS Education and Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bills on their “to do” list for when they return the week of October 15. The Commerce Justice Science, Interior-Environment, and Homeland Security bills were marked up in subcommittee on Tuesday, and the Legislative Branch and State Foreign Operations bills were added to the full committee agenda for the Thursday markup. All of the spending bills, except for the Homeland Security bill, were voted on unanimously. The Homeland Security bill passed by a vote of 17 to 14 with all Democrats, except for Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), voting against the bill.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) is meeting with President Trump this afternoon to discuss the path forward. House and Senate Appropriations staff will meet during the October recess to discuss compromise spending allocations. The House FY20 spending bills were written before the budget agreement was reached in August and will have to be reduced to the agreed upon nondefense spending limit.

Commerce Justice Science

The $70.833B FY20 Commerce Justice Science bill is $6.715B above the FY19 enacted level and $1.1B more than the President’s FY20 budget request.

Bill Text

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20CJS%20Appropriations%20Act,%20S.2584.pdf

Report Language

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20CJS%20Appropriations%20Act,%20Report%20116-127.pdf

Republican Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/fy2020-commerce-justice-science-appropriations-bill-approved-for-senate-consideration

Democratic Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/summary-fiscal-year-2020-senate-commerce-justice-science-and-related-agencies-appropriations-bill-

Homeland Security

The $70.725B FY20 Homeland Security bill includes $17.352B for Disaster Relief and $190M for Coast Guard Overseas Contingency Operations. After excluding those two amounts, the net discretionary appropriations for DHS is $53.183B which is $3.772B above the FY19 enacted level. 

The bill includes the President’s $5B for the border wall system that, in addition to funding construction of the wall, includes funding for towers, sensors, roads, lights, cameras, gates, etc. Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Democrat Jon Tester (D-MT) offered two wall-related amendments during the full committee markup that were defeated. The first amendment struck the $5B for the border wall and reallocated $1.375B of that funding to make investments in non-intrusive inspection (NII) border technology, computed tomography (CT) for TSA screening, FEMA Flood Mapping grants, and a second Polar Security Coast Guard Cutter. The second amendment prevented funds from being diverted from military construction projects to pay for the border wall. Sen. Tester acknowledged that the amendment would be more appropriately offered when the committee considers the FY20 Military Construction-Veterans Affairs bill, but markup of that bill was cancelled earlier this month when a similar amendment was going to be offered and was going to prevail in the markup. 

Bill Text

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Homeland%20Security%20Appropriations%20Act,%20S.2582.pdf

Report Language

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Homeland%20Security%20Appropriations%20Act,%20Report%20116-125.pdf

Sen. Tester Amendments

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/tester1.pdf

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/tester2.pdf

Republican Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/senate-appropriations-committee-sends-fy2020-homeland-security-bill-to-full-senate

Democratic Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/summary-fiscal-year-2020-senate-homeland-security-appropriations-bill-

Interior-Environment

The $35.8B FY20 Interior bill is $248M above the FY19 enacted level and $5.46B more than the President’s FY20 budget request. In addition, for the first time, the bill provides $2.25B in a wildfire budget cap adjustment to respond to the increasing incidence of catastrophic wildfires across the country.

Bill Text

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Interior%20Environment%20Appropriations%20Act,%20S.2580.pdf

Report Language

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Interior%20Environment%20Appropriations%20Act,%20Report%20116-123.pdf

Republican Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/fy2020-interior-environment-appropriations-bill-approved-by-full-committee

Democratic Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/summary-fiscal-year-2020-interior-environment-and-related-agencies-appropriations-bill-

Legislative Branch

The FY20 Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill provides $3.593B in discretionary budget authority, excluding items pertaining solely to the House, which total an additional $1.499B.  Total funding accommodated in the bill is $5.092B, which is $256M more than the FY19 enacted level and $197M less than the budget request.

Bill Text

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Legislative%20Branch%20Appropriations%20Act,%20S.2581.pdf

Report Language

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20Legislative%20Branch%20Appropriations%20Act,%20Report%20116-124.pdf

Republican Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/senate-committee-advances-fy2020-legislative-branch-appropriations-bill

Democratic Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/summary-fiscal-year-2020-senate-legislative-branch-appropriations-bill-

State Foreign Operations

The $55B FY20 State Foreign Operations bill is $782M above the FY19 enacted level and $11.6B more than the President’s FY20 budget request. The bill includes $8B for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO).

Bill Text

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20SFOPS%20Appropriations%20Act,%20S.2583.pdf

Report Language

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/FY2020%20SFOPS%20Appropriations%20Act,%20Report%20116-126.pdf

Republican Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/fy2020-state-and-foreign-operations-bill-advanced-by-full-committee

Democratic Press Release

https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/minority/summary-fiscal-year-2020-state-foreign-operations-and-related-programs-appropriations-bill-

FY2020 Appropriations Bills Status

Subcommittee	House Action	Senate Action
Agriculture	Subcommittee: May 23Full Committee: June 4Floor: June 25	Subcommittee: Sept 17Full Committee: Sept 19
Commerce Justice Science	Subcommittee: May 17Full Committee: May 22Floor: June 25	Subcommittee: Sept 24Full Committee: Sept 26
Defense	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 21Floor: June 19	Subcommittee: Sept 10Full Committee: Sept 12
Energy & Water	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 21Floor: June 19	Full Committee: Sept 12
Financial Services	Subcommittee: June 3Full Committee: June 11Floor: June 26	Subcommittee: Sept 17Full Committee: Sept 19
Homeland Security	Subcommittee: June 5Full Committee: June 11Floor:	Subcommittee: Sept 24Full Committee: Sept 26
Interior Environment	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 22Floor: June 25	Subcommittee: Sept 24Full Committee: Sept 26
Labor HHS Education	Subcommittee: April 30Full Committee: May 8Floor: June 19	Released: Sept 18
Legislative Branch	Subcommittee: May 1Full Committee: May 9Floor:	Full Committee: Sept 26
Military Construction VA	Subcommittee: May 1Full Committee: May 9Floor: June 25
State Foreign Operations	Subcommittee: May 10Full Committee: May 16Floor: June 19	Full Committee: Sept 26
Transportation HUD	Subcommittee: May 23Full Committee: June 4 Floor: June 25	Subcommittee: Sept 17Full Committee: Sept 19

Today the House will vote on a resolution calling for the Acting Director of National Intelligence to provide the House and Senate Intelligence Committees with the whistleblower’s complaint and the IG’s determination that the complaint was a credible urgent concern as well as any other comments the Acting Director considers appropriate. The resolution also requires the Acting Director to take steps to protect the whistleblower and to preserve all records, documents, communications, and other information relating to the allegations. While it is only a non-binding resolution, the vote will put Republicans on record on this issue.

H.Res. 576

https://rules.house.gov/sites/democrats.rules.house.gov/files/BILLS-116hres576ih.pdf

Yesterday, three House committee chairs (Foreign Affairs, Intelligence, and Oversight) sent a letter to White House Counsel Pat Cipollone following up on a September 9^th letter they sent in which they requested by September 16 all records related to the whistleblowers complaint, the transcript of the President’s call, a full list of staff who participated in the call and in preparation for the call, and any records on the suspension of aid to Ukraine.

September 24^th Letter

https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/2019-09-24.eec_engel_schiff_to_cipollone-wh_re_potus_ukraine.pdf

September 9^th Letter

https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/ele_schiff_cummings_letter_to_sec_pompeo_on_ukraine.pdf

Also yesterday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) announced that the House of Representatives is moving forward with an official impeachment inquiry. The Speaker directed six Committees to proceed with their investigations under that umbrella of impeachment inquiry. The committees are: Judiciary, Selection Committee on Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, Oversight and Reform, Ways and Means, and Financial Services. There was no concrete timeline laid out for the impeachment inquiry, although Pelosi wants it completed expeditiously. Some said it could move ahead within weeks. Others said it might continue to next year’s election. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Nadler (D-NY) said he would like it done by the end of this year.

Speaker Pelosi did not say whether the full House would vote to formalize the impeachment inquiry or whether the six committee investigations would be condensed into a single probe. In past impeachment proceedings, each of the committees involved provided input to include in articles of impeachment. In this case, the articles could be written up by the House Judiciary Committee, which then would vote on whether to refer them to the full House of Representatives. After the Judiciary committee vote, the articles, if approved, would be given special status on the House floor and it requires a simple majority of voting lawmakers to approve them.

Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) announced the Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations and Defense Appropriations subcommittees will mark up their FY20 spending bills in subcommittee on Tuesday, September 10, and the State-Foreign Operations bill in subcommittee on September 11. The full committee will mark up those three bills as well as the Energy and Water bills on Thursday, September 12 at 10:30 am. The committee will also approve its 302(b) allocations during the full committee markup.

The Senate Appropriations committee’s goal is to mark up four bills each week for the next three weeks in order to get all 12 of its annual spending bills done by the end of September. The Homeland Security spending bill will go the last week of September given its contentious nature.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) sent a Dear Colleague yesterday in which he wrote that the House will vote on a “clean” continuing resolution (CR) the week of September 16. The CR will keep the government funded through late November. The House is scheduled to be in session through November 21 when they break for Thanksgiving. The list of anomalies (https://www.vantagepointstrat.com/anomalies-2/) sent by the White House to Congress a few weeks ago assumed a CR through mid-December.

Hoyer’s Dear Colleague also set out the legislative agenda for the House for the month of September. The House will focus on three bills next week that will block oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, and in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. In addition to considering the CR the week of September 16, they will also vote on H.R. 1423, legislationthat would eliminate forced arbitration in employment, consumer, and civil rights cases and H.R. 3106, the DATA Act. Democrats in the House also want to consider gun violence prevention legislation that the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to mark up next week. The House also will address a number of items that expire on September 30th, including the National Flood Insurance Program, authorization of the Export-Import Bank, and a number of health programs. Hoyer expects the House to go to conference on the National Defense Authorization Act. Finally, the House may consider additional legislation addressing the humanitarian crisis at the border and take up additional legislation to strengthen election security.

FY2020 Appropriations Bills Status

Subcommittee	House Action	Senate Action
Agriculture	Subcommittee: May 23Full Committee: June 4Floor: June 25
Commerce Justice Science	Subcommittee: May 17Full Committee: May 22Floor: June 25
Defense	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 21Floor: June 19	Subcommittee: Sept 10Full Committee: Sept 12
Energy & Water	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 21Floor: June 19	Full Committee: Sept 12
Financial Services	Subcommittee: June 3Full Committee: June 11Floor: June 26
Homeland Security	Subcommittee: June 5Full Committee: June 11Floor:
Interior Environment	Subcommittee: May 15Full Committee: May 22Floor: June 25
Labor HHS Education	Subcommittee: April 30Full Committee: May 8Floor: June 19	Subcommittee: Sept 10Full Committee: Sept 12
Legislative Branch	Subcommittee: May 1Full Committee: May 9Floor:
Military Construction VA	Subcommittee: May 1Full Committee: May 9Floor: June 25
State Foreign Operations	Subcommittee: May 10Full Committee: May 16Floor: June 19	Subcommittee: Sept 11Full Committee: Sept 12
Transportation HUD	Subcommittee: May 23Full Committee: June 4 Floor: June 25