Tagged: congressional leadership

Protection from Obamacare Mandates and Congressional Equity Act This bill alters provisions relating to the requirement to maintain minimum essential health care coverage (i.e., the individual mandate), as well as provisions relating to health care coverage for certain executive branch and congressional employees. Specifically, the bill exempts individuals from the requirement to maintain minimum essential health care coverage if they reside in a county where fewer than two health insurers offer insurance on the health insurance exchange. Under current law, there is no penalty for failing to maintain minimum essential health care coverage. The bill also requires certain executive branch and congressional employees to participate in health insurance exchanges. Under current law, Members of Congress and their designated staff are required to obtain coverage through health insurance exchanges, rather than the Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) Program. Current regulations authorize government contributions toward such coverage and require Members of Congress to designate which members of their staff are required to obtain coverage through an exchange. The bill requires all congressional staff, including employees of congressional committees and leadership offices, to obtain coverage through an exchange. The bill also prohibits Members of Congress from having the discretion to determine which of their employees are eligible to enroll through an exchange. Further, the President, Vice President, and executive branch political appointees must also obtain coverage through exchanges, rather than FEHB. The government is prohibited from contributing to or subsidizing the health insurance coverage of the officials and employees subject to this requirement, including Members of Congress and their staff.

This resolution informs the Senate that a quorum of the House of Representatives has assembled, that Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana has been elected Speaker, and that Kevin McCumber has been elected Clerk of the House of Representatives of the 119th Congress.

This resolution provides for the President to be informed that Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana has been elected as Speaker and Kevin McCumber has been elected as Clerk of the House of Representatives of the 119th Congress.

This resolution establishes rules for the House of Representatives for the 119th Congress.The resolution adopts the rules from the 118th Congress with specified changes, includingproviding that a resolution vacating the Office of Speaker is only privileged (takes precedence over all matters other than motions to adjourn) if it is offered by a sponsor of the majority party joined by eight cosponsors from the majority party; providing that the Speaker may only entertain a motion to suspend the rules on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays; prohibiting waiver (by rule or by order) of the germaneness rule (which requires amendments to be of the same subject matter as the measure under consideration); and prohibiting consideration of measures that exceed a specified long-term budget impact according to the Congressional Budget Office.Additional changes includeauthorizing the use of electronic voting within a committee;authorizing remote appearances by non-executive branch witnesses and their counsel in committee proceedings; eliminating the House Office of Diversity and Inclusion; eliminating certain collective bargaining rights for employees of the House of Representatives; reauthorizing the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party; reauthorizing the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission; and reauthorizing the House Democracy Assistance Commission (an entity that advises democratic parliaments in other countries) and renaming it the House Democracy Partnership. The resolution provides for the consideration of H.R. 21, H.R. 22, H.R. 23, H.R. 26, H.R. 27, H.R. 28, H.R. 29, H.R. 30, H.R. 31, H.R. 32, H.R. 33, and H.R. 35.

This resolution thanks Senator Patty Murray (of Washington) for her service as the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and designates her as President Pro Tempore Emerita.