House

Legislation to restructure the federal government's sale of helium from the Federal Helium Reserve easily passed the House on Friday.

Members voted 394-1 in favor of the Responsible Helium Administration and Stewardship Act, H.R. 527. The only member against it was Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.).

Legislation allowing the government to re-direct millions of dollars was approved in an overwhelming 361-41 vote.

Several House Democrats on Thursday introduced legislation that would impose a minimum 45 percent tax rate on taxable income above $1 million, and would set a 49 percent rate on income above $1 billion.

The Fairness in Taxation Act, H.R. 1723, was proposed by Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), who said the bill would help put the nation's wealth back into the hands of middle- and lower-income workers.

The House is expected to vote today on a bill that would let the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) dodge the sequester, which could end the battle over rising flight delays around the country.

Late Thursday, the Senate passed S. 853, the Reducing Flight Delays Act. The bill gives the secretary of transportation to move up to $253 million to the FAA to help avoid furloughs of thousands of air traffic controllers.

Several Republicans blamed President Obama on Thursday for imposing flight delays on Americans by furloughing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees, and for not speaking out on the Kermit Gosnell abortion trial in Pennsylvania.

One after another, dozens of Republicans took to the House floor as part of a coordinated attempt to raise awareness on both issues.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Thursday urged all members of the House to attend a classified briefing from the Obama administration on the apparent use of chemical weapons by Syria.

"Today, the administration has confirmed that the Assad regime in Syria has crossed a dangerous, game-changing red line, using chemical weapons against its own citizens," Cantor told members on the House floor.

"The Syrian conflict has raged for many months, and nearly a hundred thousand Syrian civilians have been killed," he said. "The conflict now threatens to spill over Syria's borders, destabilizing key American allies.

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The House on Thursday approved a rule governing debate on a bill that would alter the way the government sells its helium stocks.

Members approved the rule in a 231-177 vote, after a debate in which Democrats again blamed Republicans for wasting two days to approve the non-controversial bill. The House is expected to consider amendments and hold a final passage vote on the bill on Friday.

Rep. John Barrow (D-Ga.) on Thursday told House leaders from both parties that they violated the trust of members of the House by quickly approving a change to the Stop Trading On Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act earlier this month

Earlier in April, the House passed a bill ending the requirement that senior officials post their financial information online. But Barrow complained that it was done with no debate, and after members had been told there were no more votes that day.

"I don't blame Mr. and Mrs. America for saying that Congress is not doing its work. They're right, we're not," Hoyer says.

Reps. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) and Tom Massie (R-Ky.) have proposed legislation that would give federal judges the option of imposing criminal penalties below the minimums set out in federal law.

The Justice Safety Valve Act is meant to give judges more leeway in sentencing, both to consider factors that might justify a reduced sentence, and to ensure that people accused of nonviolent crimes don't force the early release of violent criminals.