The Houses Stays Open

The House of Representatives is still open for business this week after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) easily survived a motion to vacate brought by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) last week, thanks to a bipartisan vote to kill the measure.

This week, Members return to Washington to pass a long-awaited bill that would reauthorize several Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) programs for the next five years. The FAA is currently operating under a short-term extension of authority.

The House will take up the Senate-passed version which authorizes over $105 billion for the FAA through FY2028. It would also add additional long-haul flight slots to Reagan National Airport just outside of DC which Members frequently use to commute to-and-from the Capitol.

The House will also take up other bills under expedited procedures this week, including additional reauthorization bills for the Coast Guard and National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and a bill making the Commerce Department the President’s principal advisor on blockchain technology competition.

Other fast-tracked bills concern product labeling and consumer safety standards, fee disclosures, agency AI and supply initiatives, and healthcare services and research. Legislation moving through regular order includes a series of law enforcement-related bills to commemorate National Police Week.

Members will also participate in several committee hearings this week, including the following:

  • The House Oversight and Accountability Committee will hear testimony on assessing China’s threat to U.S. military installations
  • The Senate Finance Committee will discuss supporting rural healthcare
  • The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology will discuss the National Science Foundation’s current and future priorities
  • The Senate Appropriations Committee will examine the Department of Commerce’s FY25 budget request