House to Vote on Marijuana Decriminalization, Senate to Take Up Nominations

What’s happening in Congress?

• Congress returns this week from Thanksgiving recess facing a December 11th deadline to pass legislation to fund the government and avoid a partial government shutdown. Lawmakers reached a bipartisan deal on topline spending levels last week, and may bring a funding bill to the floor before the end of this week. 
• Leaders in both parties have expressed a desire to pass coronavirus relief legislation before the end of the year, but there has been little progress to date in reaching a compromise and it is unclear whether any progress will be made this week.
• Time is dwindling for Congress to process bills to fund the government and provide coronavirus relief given that the House’s final scheduled day in session is December 10th and the Senate only has one work week on the calendar after that date.

SENATE SCHEDULE

• The Senate convenes Monday for a procedural vote on the nomination of Taylor McNeel to be a U.S. district judge for the Southern District of Mississippi. A confirmation vote will likely occur Tuesday.
• Following the McNeel nomination, the Senate is expected to consider another district court nomination, in addition nominees to the federal claims court and the National Credit Union Administration Board.
• The Senate may also reconsider the nomination of Judy Shelton to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, which failed a procedural motion by one vote while Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was quarantined for COVID-19.
• Committees will hold hearings on legislation to reform immunities for social media platforms, U.S. arms sales to the United Arab Emirates, and the quarterly report about the implementation of the CARES Act.

HOUSE SCHEDULE 

• The House starts its week on Wednesday with votes on five bills under the fast-track suspension of the rules process, including legislation to require foreign companies to certify that they aren’t owned or controlled by a foreign government to issue securities.
• The rest of the week is expected to be headlined by a vote on the MORE Act, which would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level and expunge related criminal convictions. It will also feature bills to expand the use of bounties in the pursuit of suspected war criminals, and ban the breeding and private possession of “big cats” (such as lions and tigers). Additional bills may be added to the schedule.
• Committees will hold hearings on modernizing veteran eligibility for VA care, oversight of the COVID-19 response by the Treasury Dept. and Federal Reserve, and ensuring the 2020 Census count is complete and accurate.

Check below throughout the week to see the vote results and updates to the schedule.

Schedule subject to change. All times Eastern.

SENATE

Monday after 5:30pm

• Cloture motion on the nomination of Taylor McNeel to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi Invoked 52-36.

Tuesday after 11am

• Confirmation of Taylor McNeel to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi Confirmed 53-39.
• Cloture motion on the nomination of J. Philip Calabrese to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Ohio Invoked 58-35.
• Confirmation of J. Philip Calabrese to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Ohio Confirmed 58-35.
• Cloture motion on the nomination of Kyle Hauptman to be a Member of the National Credit Union Administration Board for a term expiring August 2, 2025 Invoked 56-37.

Wednesday

• Confirmation of Kyle Hauptman to be a Member of the National Credit Union Administration Board for a term expiring August 2, 2025 Confirmed 56-39.
• Cloture motion on the nomination of Kathryn C. Davis to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims for a term of 15 years Invoked 51-44.
• Cloture motion on the nomination of Christopher Waller to be a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for the unexpired term of 14 years from February 1, 2016 Invoked 50-45.
• Confirmation of Kathryn C. Davis to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims for a term of 15 years Confirmed 51-45.
• Grassley Amendment to S. 578: ALS Disability Insurance Access Act (60 vote threshold) Not adopted 48-49.
• Passage of S. 578: ALS Disability Insurance Access Act as amended, if amended (60 vote threshold) Passed 96-1.

Thursday

• Confirmation of Christopher Waller to be a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for the unexpired term of 14 years from February 1, 2016 Confirmed 48-47.
• Cloture motion on the nomination of Liam Hardy to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for a term of 15 years set to expire on the date prescribed by law Invoked 61-34.
• Confirmation of Liam Hardy to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces for a term of 15 years set to expire on the date prescribed by law Confirmed 59-34.

Rest of the Week

• Possible consideration of the cloture motion on the nomination of Stephen Sidney Schwartz to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims for a term of 15 years
• Possible consideration of the cloture motion on the nomination of Nathan A. Simington to be a Member of the Federal Communications Commission for a term of five years from July 1, 2019
• Possible reconsideration of the cloture motion on the nomination of Judy Shelton to be a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for the unexpired term of 14 years from February 1, 2020

HOUSE

Monday & Tuesday

• No votes are expected.

Wednesday after 6:30pm (under suspension of the rules)

• S. 945: Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 7995: Coin Metal Modification Authorization and Cost Savings Act of 2020 Passed 343-41.
• S. 4054: U.S. Grain Standards Reauthorization Act of 2020 Passed by voice vote.
• Senate Amendment to H.R. 1830: National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 4403: Stop Debt Collection Abuse Act of 2019, as amended Consideration postponed.

Thursday after 12pm

• H.R. 1380: Big Cat Public Safety Act, as amended Passed 272-114.
• H.R. 1819: War Crimes Rewards Expansion Act Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 7903: To amend the Small Business Act to establish the Community Advantage Loan Program, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 8211: 504 Modernization and Small Manufacturer Enhancement Act of 2020, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 8199: 504 Credit Risk Management Improvement Act of 2020 Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 8229: Parity for HUBZone Appeals Act of 2020 Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 5517: Gandhi-King Scholarly Exchange Initiative Act, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.Res. 996: Expressing the sense of Congress that the activities of Russian national Yevgeniy Prigozhin and his affiliated entities pose a threat to the national interests and security of the United States and of its allies and partners, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.Res. 958: Condemning the practice of politically motivated imprisonment and calling for the immediate release of political prisoners in the Russian Federation and urging action by the United States Government to impose sanctions with respect to persons responsible for that form of human rights abuse Passed by voice vote.
• H.Res. 17: Expressing concern over the detention of Austin Tice, and other purposes, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.Res. 1115: Calling for the Immediate Release of Trevor Reed, a United States Citizen who was Unjustly Sentenced to 9 Years in a Russian Prison, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 1049: National Heritage Area Act of 2020, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• S. 199: Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act Passed by voice vote.
• S. 212: Indian Community Economic Enhancement Act of 2020, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• S. 914: Coordinated Ocean Observations and Research Act of 2020, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• S. 1342: Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act of 2020, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 306: Kettle Creek Battlefield Survey Act, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 3682: Land Grant-Mercedes Traditional Use Recognition and Consultation Act, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 4153: Health Care Access for Urban Native Veterans Act Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 7045: To require the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a study on lands that could be included in a National Forest in Hawai'i, and for other purposes Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 8810: National Landslide Preparedness Act, as amended Passed by voice vote.
• H.R. 3571: City and State Diplomacy Act, as amended Consideration postponed.

Friday between 9am and 3pm

• H.R. 3884: Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act of 2019 Passed 228-164.
• S. 2981: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Amendments Act of 2020 Passed 265-124.

Tell your reps how to vote on this week's bills and share your thoughts below!

— Eric Revell