MAJORITY WHIPLINE: MONDAY, JULY 15, 2019

Floor Schedule and Procedure:

Suspensions (14 bills):

1. H.R. 2615 – United States-Northern Triangle Enhancement Engagement Act, as amended (Rep. Engel – Foreign Affairs)

This bill authorizes assistance to Central America for Fiscal Year 2020 and includes conditions on any assistance that goes to the central governments of the Northern Triangle countries, given the urgent need to continue to address the root causes of child and family migration from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. It also lays out a series of actions to be taken by the Secretary of State, the USAID Administrator, and other U.S. government officials to promote inclusive economic growth and development, combat corruption, strengthen democratic institutions, and improve security conditions. Lastly, it puts in place targeted visa bans and asset freezes for corrupt individuals from the Northern Triangle countries.

1. H.R. 2744 – USAID Branding Modernization Act (Rep. McCaul – Foreign Affairs)

This bill reaffirms the Administrator’s ability to prescribe, as appropriate, the use of branding and marking for USAID-funded activities overseas, and requires an audit by the USAID Inspector General on the compliance of branding and marking requirements by implementing partners.

1. H.Res. 441 – Condemning the attack on the AMA Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in July 1994 and expressing the concern of the United States regarding the continuing, 25-year-long delay in the resolution of this case and encouraging accountability for the attack (Rep. Deutch – Foreign Affairs)

This resolution condemns the AMIA attack, sends condolences to the families of the 85 victims who were killed, and calls for swift action to bring the perpetrators to justice.

1. H.Res. 432 – Condemning the attacks on peaceful protesters and supporting an immediate peaceful transition to a civilian-led democratic government in Sudan (Rep. Kildee – Foreign Affairs)

This resolution states that the House stands with the people of Sudan, supports a civilian-led government, and condemns the Sudanese government’s suppression of opposition. It also encourages the African Union to continue supporting the Sudanese people and condemns regional actors’ undermining of negotiations. Furthermore, it urges the Administration to continue working with the international community and emphasizes that political reform, accountability, and respect for human rights are needed for a better relationship with the United States.

1. H.Res. 345 – Recognizing widening threats to freedoms of the press and expression around the world, reaffirming the centrality of a free and independent press to the health of democracy, and reaffirming freedom of the press as a priority of the United States in promoting democracy, human rights, and good governance on World Press Freedom Day, as amended (Rep. Schiff – Foreign Affairs)

This resolution recognizes global threats to freedoms of the press and expression, reaffirms the importance of a well-functioning press to a democracy, and upholds the notion that the United States prioritizes press freedom.

1. H.R. 2037 – Saudi Arabia Human Rights and Accountability Act of 2019, as amended (Rep. Malinowski – Foreign Affairs)

This bill requires a report from the Director of National Intelligence to Congress on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, including persons that were complicit in or supported the operation. It also imposes visa/travel sanctions on any individuals identified in the DNI’s report with exemptions included to comply with UN agreements. Additionally, it requires the Secretary of State provide a report to Congress on human rights in Saudi Arabia as well as U.S. actions to address rights violations and a description of intolerant educational materials published by Saudi Arabia.

1. H.Res. 129 – Condemning the Government of Saudi Arabia’s continued detention and alleged abuse of woman’s rights activists, as amended (Rep. Frankel – Foreign Affairs)

This bill condemns the government of Saudi Arabia for its continued detention and abuse of women’s rights activists, urges the Saudi government to release individuals wrongfully detained, and calls for the U.S. to use the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Act to identify and impose travel and financial restrictions on officials responsible for such abuses.

1. H.R. 97 – RAWR Act (Rep. Buchanan – Foreign Affairs)

This bill modifies the Department of State rewards program to authorize rewards to individuals who furnish information that assists in the prevention or identification of crimes related to wildlife trafficking.

1. H.R. 526 – Cambodia Democracy Act, as amended (Rep. Yoho – Foreign Affairs)

This bill pushes back against the Hun Sen regime’s undermining of democracy and related human rights abuses by applying financial sanctions to the figures who carry out his undemocratic agenda and codifying the Administration’s existing visa restrictions for these individuals.

1. H.R. 277 – ASCEND Act of 2019, as amended (Rep. Velazquez – Small Business)

This bill makes permanent the temporary increase of the unsecured loan limit to $25,000 for physical damage loans in SBA disaster declarations.

1. H.R. 2142 – To amend the Small Business Act to require the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman to create a centralized website for compliance guides, and for other purposes (Rep. Delgado – Small Business)

This bill requires the Office of the National Ombudsman at the Small Business Administration to create a centralized website with hyperlinks to small entity compliance guides and the contact person at agencies who could provide small businesses with assistance. The legislation would also require the Office of the National Ombudsman to report on federal agencies’ compliance with the Section 212 requirements of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act in its annual report to Congress.

1. H.R. 2331 – SBA Cyber Awareness Act (Rep. Crow – Small Business)

This bill amends the Small Business Act to require the Small Business Administrator (SBA) to issue annual reports assessing its IT and cybersecurity infrastructure and notify Congress and affected parties of cyber incidents when they occur.

1. H.R. 1649 – Small Business Development Center Cyber Training Act of 2019 (Rep. Chabot – Small Business)

This bill amends the Small Business Act to help Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) establish a cyber counseling certification program in lead SBDCs to better assist small businesses with planning and implementing cybersecurity measures to defend against cyber-attacks. The Small Business Administration would be authorized to reimburse SBDCs for employee certification costs up to $350,000 per fiscal year.

1. H.R. 2345 – Clarifying the Small Business Runway Extension Act (Rep. Stauber – Small Business)

This bill clarifies that section 3(a)(2)(C) of the Small Business Act applies to the United States Small Business Administration, aligns the size standards, and requires the SBA to develop a transition plan for small businesses and federal agencies to transition from the previous 3-year calculation to the new 5-year calculation as mandated by the Runway Extension Act.

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

Matthew 7:12