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The House and Senate are in session this week. The House may consider a $78 billion tax package, while the Senate may finally take action on a bipartisan border security package that negotiators have been working on for more than two months.
A bipartisan group of senators and the Biden Administration have been negotiating a border security and immigration-related package, and many expect bill text to be publicly released this week. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) initially cast doubt on the proposal drafted by Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) last week but later clarified that he supports the package. In the House, there is uncertainty as to how the House GOP conference will vote – if at all – on the bipartisan package. The original negotiations centered around including a border security measure in exchange for the Biden Administration’s $106 billion national security supplemental request for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and the Indo-Pacific region. The negotiations now include the possibility of splitting international relief aid from the border package. Both parties will need to corral members who may vote “No” due to various controversial elements of the legislation.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is deciding whether the House will vote this week on a tax agreement, the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024 (H.R. 7024), which expands the child tax credit and reinstates certain business tax breaks. This upcoming week will reveal what level of support the $78 billion deal drafted by House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has. Notably, the legislation passed through the House Ways and Means Committee on January 19 by a bipartisan vote of 40-3. Some Democratic lawmakers have already questioned whether the deal does enough for working families.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and House Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger (R-Texas) agreed to a deal Friday evening on the funding allocations -302(b)s- for all twelve FY 2024 appropriations bills. The agreement gives appropriators just under five weeks to fund parts of the federal government until the first shutdown deadline of Friday, March 1. The leaders will keep the 302(b) subcommittee totals secret until the drafting of the bills is complete.
The House will consider eight bills under suspension of the rules, including the Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act (H.R. 5528), which evaluates the impact of the lowest price technically acceptable source selection process on national security. The House will also vote on the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act (H.R. 5585), which imposes new criminal penalties on individuals who evade U.S. Border Patrol agents or other law enforcement officers; the Consequences for Social Security Fraud Act (H.R. 6678), which allows noncitizens who commit identity fraud to be deported or not admitted to enter the U.S.; the No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists (H.R. 6679), which bars individuals involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks against Israel, including members of Hamas, from being admitted into the U.S. and from receiving any immigration benefits; and the Protect Our Communities from DUIs Act (H.R. 6976), which bars noncitizens who are convicted of—or admit to—driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol from entering or remaining in the U.S. The Senate will vote on the nomination of Joshua Kolar to be a U.S. Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit.
On Tuesday, the House Homeland Security Committee will hold a markup of articles of impeachment (H. Res. 863) against the Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, for “Willful and Systemic Refusal to Comply with the Law” and “Breach of Public Trust.” Speaker Johnson indicated on Friday in a “Dear Colleague” letter that “A vote on the floor will be held as soon as possible” after the committee markup is complete. Only one Cabinet Secretary in U.S. history has ever been impeached by the House: William Belknap, who served as Secretary of War in 1876.
For the remainder of the week, the House will hold several committee hearings, including an Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee hearing on “America’s Report Card: Oversight of K-12 Public Education.” The Senate will also hold several hearings, including a Budget Committee hearing on “A Blueprint for Prosperity: Expanding Housing Affordability.”
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