On Tuesday afternoon, January 15 the U.S. House Rules Committee is scheduled to debate the rules for floor consideration of H.R 268, making Supplemental Appropriations for necessary expenses related to flood mitigation, disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure in areas that received a major disaster designation as a result of Hurricanes Florence, Michael,…
The debate that preceded the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill was the most contentious in recent history. In a video article on From The Ground Up on KBTX, the Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture had this to say …
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US Capitol
We have reviewed the potential impacts of the 2016 elections on pertinent congressional committees that are important to our clients’ issues. Here’s what we’ve found:
UPDATE 12/01/2016
Today the House Republican Steering Committee met and recommended the Members below for committee chairs in the 115th Congress:
Agriculture: Rep. Mike Conaway (R-TX)
Appropriations: Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)
Armed Services: Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-TX)…
Below is a list of the 53 incoming freshman members of the U.S. House of 
Representatives for the 115th Congress. There are 26 new Republicans and 27 new Democrats.
After the 2016 general elections, Republicans maintained majority control of the U.S. House of Representatives with (currently) 239 of the 435 seats. Democrats currently hold 193 seats. To date, there remain three House races undecided that will impact the final numbers in the U.S. House: Louisiana congressional district 4 will be decided in a run-off election on December 10 and two California districts #7 and #49 are awaiting final numbers.…
When Congress returns on November 14 they are 
scheduled for 16 legislative days in the lame duck session with a planned adjournment on December 16. There remain multiple, big-ticket issues to resolve upon their return and with each passing day, it becomes more uncertain if they will have enough time to pass all the measures. Some of the measures include:
Annual Appropriations: Prior to adjourning for the general elections on September 28, Congress adopted a continuing resolution that funds federal government agencies until December 9. To date, Congress has only adopted one of the 12 annual spending bills. Lawmakers had planned to address these spending bills after the election in small packages containing three or four of the bills, known as “minibuses.” It was assumed minibuses would be more affable to lawmakers as opposed to one omnibus spending bill containing all 11 of the remaining appropriations bills.…
Cansler Consulting is staying on top of the drinking water infrastructure challenges faced by our country and how the the government is responding to it now and in the future.
If history of the previous EPA assessments continue to repeat, there will likely be significant changes in some states’ needs in the new EPA assessment in 2017. These changes will result in adjustments to individual states’ DWSRF financial allotments. Most shifts in states’ needs can be attributed to expected changes in the status of projects from one survey to the next.…
The exterior of the Flint Water Plant in Michigan. Flint is in the spotlight as concerns over it’s water quality and lead content have made national headlines.
The drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan heightened the public’s attention across the U.S. about the issue of the deteriorating decades-old drinking water infrastructure. Along with the rest of America, Cansler Consulting watched as the crisis unfolded. Members of Congress, state and federal regulatory officials conducted multiple hearings and site visits to learn more about these challenges occurring in multiple municipalities throughout the U.S. What they learned is, without future federal budget pressures, drinking water infrastructure issues are likely to remain prominent in the U.S. through 2037 and beyond. Lobbying and government relations are the most effective ways to apply those pressures.…
Budget Revenues 2016
To give you some perspective, since 1966 the U.S. has maintained an annual deficit, where federal spending surpassed federal income, in all but 5 years (1969, 1998-2001). Over this 50-year period the U.S. deficit has averaged 2.8 percent of U.S Gross Domestic Product (GDP). According to the World Bank estimated 2014 GDP for the U.S. was $17. 4 trillion, #1 in world followed by China with a GDP of $10.4 trillion.…
President Obama announces his FY 2017 budget
As in each year preceding, on February 9, President Obama released his annual budget for the U.S. that tops $4 trillion. The budget outlines the current Administration’s policy proposals, budgetary projections, and economic forecasts for the next decade. This will be the last annual budget report for his administration.
The Obama Administration can be commended for controlling the federal budget deficit as the deficit has improved over the last 6 years. But, prior to the budget announcement, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released their annual Budget and Economic Outlook report saying the U.S. will be unable to sustain improving deficits in the next decade (2016-2026). CBO’s analysis is conducted assuming current federal policies remain in place. Congressional leaders and others use the data to assess recent policy decisions and to guide future policy decisions for federal programs.…
2015 Productive Legislative Year For Congress, But 2016 Presidential Election Year Holds Little PromiseThe U.S. House and Senate reconvened in January for the 2nd Session of the 114th Congress after closing out a very productive and bipartisan 1st legislative session. Major accomplishments during the last session of Congress included:
The FY 2016 omnibus spending package H.R. 2029, now heads to the White House after the 65-33 Senate and 316-113
House votes.
The $1.15 trillion omnibus spending bill funds federal government agencies for the remaining ten months of FY 2016 ending September 30, 2016. The bill includes funding for all 12 annual appropriations bills and reflects the increased domestic discretionary funding provided by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, enacted on November 2.…
U.S. Representative Kevin Brady (R-TX), Chairman, U.S. House Ways & Means Committee
Ongoing discussions are proving fruitful between the Treasury Department and House and Senate tax lawmakers. Kevin Brady (R-TX) is the new House Ways and Means Committee Chairman and according to Brady a new tax package is being finalized for consideration by Congress toward the end of the 1st session of the 114th Congress.…
U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) have released their respective chamber’s legislative calendars for the 2nd session of the 114th Congress in 2016.
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Procedural action in the House and Senate on November 3 has cleared the path for final passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). On October 22, the President vetoed the previously adopted NDAA, H.R. 1735 stating, “While there are provisions in this bill that I support, including the codification of key interrogation-related reforms from Executive Order 13491 and positive changes to the military retirement system, the bill would, among other things, constrain the ability of the Department of Defense to conduct multi-year defense planning and align military capabilities and force structure with our national defense strategy, impede the closure of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, and prevent the implementation of essential defense reforms.“…
Cansler Consulting with clients and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)
On Friday, September 25, Speaker of the U.S. House John Boehner (R-OH) stunned everyone in Washington with his resignation from Congress at the end of October. The news came as Republican leaders were deciding the appropriate legislative route to take to pass a federal spending and keeping the federal government operating while appeasing a small group of right-wing ideologues in their party.…
