Today In Washington – September 7, 2017

Today In Washington
September 7, 2017
Source: AEO Government Relations Team, Madison Services Group

Harvey Relief
Yesterday, the House passed a $7.9 billion emergency funding bill in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. Today, the Senate will consider legislation that includes $15.25 billion for Hurricane Harvey and Irma. The Senate version will also include a three month raise of the debt ceiling, and a Continuing Resolution (CR) that will fund the federal government through December 8.
The Senate bill was revised last night to include the debt ceiling and CR after President Trump made a deal with the Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, indicating that he would sign such a bill. The deal pushes a potential fiscal showdown from September 30, to the end of the year. You can find details of the CR here.
The Long Night
House Omnibus Debate: Today the House will debate H.R. 3354, the “Make America Secure and Prosperous Appropriations Act of 2018”, an 8-bill Omnibus appropriations bill for FY2018 that will be combined with the four-bill “minibus,” passed before Congress left for August recess. 224 amendments will be considered during debate, and the House is not expected to adjourn until midnight. You can find a list of the amendments made in order here
In the wake of President Trump’s deal with Congressional Democratic Leadership, the fate of the Omnibus in the Senate, which is considering a three-month CR today, is uncertain at best.
Nomination of Emily Murphy as GSA Administrator
The White House has announced that it plans to nominate Emily Murphy, a procurement policy veteran with an outstanding record, to be the permanent administrator of the General Services Administration. See the announcement here. We are preparing a letter of support to sign onto and will send out a draft shortly.