As this process gets ever more interesting, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Sean Donovan sent a letter to House Appropriations Committee’s Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) and Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY) about the draft FY16 CJS Appropriations bill. The letter expressed strong concern on the funding levels for science and innovation due to the adherence of the committee to the Sequestration framework levels. The Committee is expected to mark up the bill this morning.
The letter says in part:
“Its shortsighted funding cuts undermine both fiscal responsibility and economic competitiveness, since they would prevent investments that both reduce future costs to taxpayers and inform business decision making, improve weather forecasting, support business expansion into new markets, and spur development of innovative technologies.”
Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee has released their long-awaited version of patent legislation. The House has promoted several bills, namely the Innovation Act, over the last few years, including this year. The text of the Protecting American Talent and Entrepreneurship Act (PATENT Act) has yet to be released, but purportedly the measure would simply pleadings, establishes a non-presumptive fee shifting standard, and contains a university carve-out in the recovery of fees section.
Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) in the markup of the Every Child Succeeds Act.
In a rare example of legislating and bipartisanship, the HELP Committee unanimously passed its rewrite of the Elementary and Secondary Education reauthorization bill this afternoon. The bill, called Every Child Succeeds, includes historically toxic education topics like testing and school performance ratings. The bill has been so toxic that the last three Congresses have tried and failed to rewrite it. The House had to pull the measure from the House Floor earlier this year after full consideration because of lack of support for final passage.
In contrast, the bipartisan legislation, cowritten by Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Murray, figuratively flew through the committee. It was unveiled last week and considered Wednesday and Thursday of this week.
In contrast, the 2013 consideration of legislation to reauthorize these programs, with a committee largely comprised of the same group of Senators, was mired in partisan gridlock, dozens of amendments and two long days of fighting. What ultimately passed on June 12, 2013 was by a party-line vote of 12-10. All Democrats on the committee approved the bill and all Republicans opposed it.
Conversely, today, every member of the committee, Republican and Democrat, including the polarizing Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Tim Scott (R-NC), Al Franken (D-MN) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), all lined up their support behind the committee chairs and the legislation. The overall tone to the whole process between Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Murray has been one of cooperation and compromise.
Senator Alexander hopes the Senate] can take up the measure before the Memorial Day recess.
While passing the Senate seems all but assured, the Senate version is vastly different than the House measure. What, if anything, will pass the House remains to be seen.
The House Science Committee Republicans released their version of the America COMPETES reauthorization legislation. The COMPETES bill reauthorizes major science programs including then entirety of the National Science Foundation, the science programs within the Department of Energy, and NIST.
With 4-10 inches forecast, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) held a hearing on opportunities in the Arctic today despite the federal government being shut down due to snow in the District of Columbia. UW professor Cecilia Bitz testified before the Alaskan Senator, who is also Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, on the topic. Professor Bitz was invited to testify by Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA).
