H.R. 1314, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015—Boehner (R-OH): The legislation puts into law a budget agreement between Congressional leaders and the Administration that suspends the debt ceiling through March 15, 2017; increases by a total of $80 billion caps on discretionary spending for the next two years; re-designates a portion of Social Security payroll taxes in order to save the Social Security Disability Insurance Program; and pays for the bill’s increased spending through a handful of inadequate offsets. The bill passed the House 266-167, and it was signed into law on November 2, 2015.

I voted NO
OCTOBER 27, 2015

H.R. 597, the Reform Exports and Expand the American Economy Act—Fincher (R-TN): The legislation, which was brought to the floor under a discharge petition, reauthorizes the Export-Import Bank of the United States through fiscal year 2019. The bill makes a variety of minor reforms to the bank, but nothing significant enough to adequately address the most significant concerns. The bill passed the House 313-118.

I voted NO.
OCTOBER 23, 2015

H.R. 3762, the Restoring Americans’ Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act—Price (R-GA): The legislation, passed through “reconciliation” procedures, repeals some of the most significant portions of ObamaCare, including the individual mandate, employer mandate, medical device tax, and “Cadillac tax.”  The bill also prohibits funding for Planned Parenthood, increases funding for Community Health Centers, and repeals the Prevention and Public Health Fund, often referred to as the “ObamaCare slush fund.”  The bill passed the House 240-189.

I voted YES.
OCTOBER 22, 2015

H.R. 1937, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2015—Amodei (R-NV): The legislation sets forth a streamlined and expedited process for the permitting of permits applied for by individuals wishing to engage in the extraction of strategic and critical minerals. The bill passed the House by a vote of 254-177.

I voted YES.

OCTOBER 21, 2015

H.R. 692, the Default Prevention Act—McClintock (R-CA): The legislation would require the Secretary of the Treasury to prioritize payments toward the principal and interest on the debt in the case of a failure to raise the debt limit. The effect of the legislation would be to remove the threat of default on the U.S. Treasury debt. The bill passed the House by a vote of 235-194.

I voted YES.
H.R. 10, the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Reauthorization Act—Boehner (R-OH): The legislation amends and reauthorizes $20 million in funding for the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act, which provides low-income families in D.C. an opportunity to apply for scholarship funding to attend a private school through the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program. The legislation also authorizes equal amounts of funding for D.C. charter schools and D.C. public schools. The bill passed the House by a vote of 240-191.

I voted YES.
OCTOBER 9, 2015

H.R. 702, To adapt to changing crude oil market conditions—Barton (R-TX): The legislation would repeal the President’s authority to restrict the export of coal, petroleum products, natural gas, or petrochemical feedstocks, as well as any accompanying materials or equipment. As amended, however, the bill ensures that the Administration is still able to maintain the export ban on crude oil to state sponsors of terrorism. It also includes an explicit prohibition on the export of crude oil to Iran. The bill passed the House by a vote of 261-159.

I voted YES.
OCTOBER 7, 2015

H.R. 3192, the Homebuyer’s Assistance Act—French (R-AR): The legislation would provide a temporary legal safe harbor, until February 1, 2016, from enforcement of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule requiring certain disclosure requirements for mortgage loan transactions, so long as the person has made a good faith effort to comply with the requirements. The bill passed the House by a vote of 303-121, and awaits further action in the Senate.

I voted YES.

House Resolution 461, Establishing a Select Investigative Panel of the Committee on Energy and Commerce—Foxx (R-NC): The resolution establishes a Select Investigative Panel within the Committee on Energy & Commerce to investigate the activities of Planned Parenthood. The resolution was adopted by a vote of 242-184. Note: neither the Senate nor the President will be presented with this House resolution; it is self-executing.

I voted YES.
OCTOBER 1, 2015

H.R. 3457, the Justice for Victims of Iranian Terrorism Act—Meehan (R-PA): The legislation would prohibit the President from waiving, reducing, or suspending sanctions on Iran until the President has certified to Congress that Iran has paid court judgments that have been awarded to victims of terrorism. The bill passed the House by a vote of 251-173, and awaits further action by the Senate.

I voted YES.

H.R. 1735, the Conference Report for the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016—Thornberry (R-TX): The Conference Report authorizes and prioritizes funding for the Department of Defense and other select national security programs within the Department of Energy for Fiscal Year 2016. The bill authorizes $515 billion in spending for base defense expenses ($6 billion less than last year), and an additional $89.2 billion for the Overseas Contingency Operation fund ($25.5 billion more than last year), for a total of $604.2 billion for FY ’16—an amount equal to the President’s budget request. The bill passed the House by a vote of 270-156, and by a vote of 70-27 in the Senate. It awaits further action by the President.

I voted NO because the conferees stripped his amendment from the conference report, which would have proclaimed Dr. Afridi an international hero for helping the U.S. pinpoint the hiding location of Osama bin Laden, and called on Pakistan to release him from prison immediately. Further note: President Obama vetoed the legislation because of spending concerns. The House is expected to respond to the President’s veto shortly.