Legislative Debate

The House Rules Committee on Saturday released an updated version of H.R. 292, which the House is expected consider on Tuesday. The bill, introduced by Rep. Chris Lee (R-N.Y.), would eliminate the practice of printing and distributing copies of all introduced legislation to all members of Congress, a change that Lee says could save as much as $35 million in printing costs over 10 years.

Under the new bill, members' offices would have to obtain all legislation through the Internet, with no exceptions. However, the bill says nothing about preventing House and Senate committees from getting paper copies, so presumably this practice could continue.

The original version of the bill that Rules posted during the week would have generally ended all printing for both members' offices and committees, but also included a fairly broad exception to that rule -- printed bills could have been received when requested by either a member or a committee.

Assuming the House passes the bill on Tuesday, it will be sent to the Senate, where Democrats would have to decide whether to take the advice of House Republicans and move to a paperless office, at least when it comes to legislation.

As expected, the House will try to pass healthcare repeal legislation next week, but Republicans are also hoping to approve two other measures before taking on healthcare. Below is an outline of what to expect, and links to bills under consideration:

Monday, Jan. 17

House not in session.

Tuesday, Jan. 18

The House meets at 2:00 p.m., and will hold votes after 6:30 p.m. The House will consider two measures on Tuesday. The first is S.Con.Res. 2, which authorizes the use of the Capitol rotunda for an event marking the 50th anniversary of the inaugural address of President Kennedy.

The second item is H.R. 292, which would end the practice of printing and distributing copies of all introduced legislation to all congressional offices three months after the bill becomes law. The bill does allow committees and members to request printed copies when needed, but otherwise, members and staff would refer to online copies of legislation. (Note: an amended version of this bill is expected later today.)

The sponsor of the Stop the OverPrinting Act, Rep. Chris Lee (R-N.Y.), estimates that as much as $35 million could be saved over 10 years by ending this practice, and notes that staff routinely gets bill text online.

Also on Tuesday, the House will begin consideration of H.R. 2, the Repealing the Job-Killing Healthcare Law Act. This bill will be taken up under a closed rule that allows for seven hours of debate.

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A spokeswoman for Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) clarified Friday that it was never the congressman's intention to propose legislation that would allow members to carry weapons on the House floor. 

"The intent of the legislation I'm working on is to allow a member of Congress to carry a concealed handgun within Washington, D.C. and Capitol grounds," Gohmert said in an e-mailed statement Friday morning. 

Gohmert earlier this week announced plans to introduce legislation allowing members to carry handguns in D.C. He indicated he was concerned about bills introduced in the wake of the Arizona shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) that he said infringed on the Second Amendment. 

Several news outlets, including The Hill, carried stories that said Gohmert's legislation would allow members of Congress not only to carry handguns in D.C., but on the House floor as well. 

In a Friday statement, Gohmert said Capitol Police provide protection for members and that lawmakers do not need to bring weapons to the floor.

"Members of Congress don't need weapons on the floor since the U.S. Capitol itself is very well protected by some of the greatest men and women in law enforcement today," Gohmert said.

Gohmert said lawmakers shouldn't need police protection around the clock, but added that there are times when they could need a gun when traveling in D.C.

"But there are times when members of Congress do not have the protection of Capitol Hill Police in one of the most dangerous cities in America," he said. "We don't need to spend millions on massive security details to escort everyone 24-7. We can just allow those who have been trusted by hundreds of thousands of people and sent to our crime capitol to protect themselves while in that federal enclave."

Beginning on Tuesday, the House will face its first substantive week of the 112th Congress, as it will attempt to pass a repeal of last year's healthcare law and a related resolution that instructs House committees to come up with healthcare alternatives.

But next week will also test House Republican plans to speed up the voting process, which has often dragged on well past the normal 15 minute deadline, and limit special order speeches at the end of the night in the House.

Earlier this month, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) warned all members that attempts will be made to close votes "as quickly as possible" after the minimum time for a vote has expired" and said members need to be prepared for these quick votes.

"When a vote is called, Members should promptly depart for the House Floor to record their vote," according to a memo from the Office of the Speaker. "Members are advised it is best to stay on the Floor during the vote series."

It adds that members should vote by electronic device when possible.

The memo says the House cloakrooms should not be used to forward requests to hold votes and instead "should simply advise inquiring Members of the time remaining on the voting clock."

Republicans also hope to limit special order speeches, which are simply remarks that members usually make on the House floor after legislative business is finished. According to a policy Republicans released earlier this month, these speeches will be shut off at 10 p.m. Assuming there is time for special order speeches, both parties will be limited to one hour-long speech and two 30 minute speeches, and otherwise can make one minute or five minute speeches.

Our colleague Jason Millman has just posted that House Republicans will restart their efforts to repeal the healthcare law next week. You can read about it here.

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke acknowledged on Thursday what many industry groups have argued for years — that a commitment by China to resolve a trade dispute is just the beginning of the process, and that China does not always finish the process.

In his candid remarks before the U.S.-China Business Council, Locke identified five specific steps that "usually" need to happen in China before a market access commitment becomes a market access reality. Locke said the first step is a statement from Chinese leaders that they will solve a market access problem, and second is the codification of that decision.

Republicans signaled Wednesday that repealing a controversial tax provision in the healthcare law is one of their most pressing priorities. 

The House Foreign Affairs Committee has arguably gotten the fastest start out of the gate in the 112th Congress. While most committees have nothing planned for January and are still getting their websites in order, Foreign Affairs, chaired by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), has already planned two hearings next week on key foreign-policy issues.

On Jan. 18, the committee will hold a hearing on the referendum on independence for South Sudan. Among those testifying is Princeton Lyman, the Obama administration's special adviser for Sudan at the State Department.

Ros-Lehtinen has warned that the U.S. and other countries need to remain vigilant to ensure the referendum succeeds.

"The regime in Khartoum has proven time and again that it will do anything to maintain its grip on power, even the perpetration of genocide," she said in a statement over the weekend.

On Jan. 19, the committee will hold a hearing on "Assessing China's Behavior and its Impact on U.S. Interests." Larry Wortzel of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission is one witness. Wortzel's group issues a list of policy recommendations related to China each year, and last year's report called on the Congress to (among other things) take steps to combat China's undervalued currency, assess the ability of the U.S. to withstand military conflict with China and ask the Obama administration for a report outlining attacks on U.S. information systems that officials have said emanate out of China.

House Foreign Affairs also had a hearing planned for this week titled, "The United Nations: Urgent Problems that Need Congressional Action," but it was postponed due to the Arizona shooting.

Just before they began a six-hour tribute to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), the House approved H.Res. 33, which assigns Republicans to House committees on Agriculture, Armed Services, Energy and Commerce, Financial Services, Rules, and Transportation and Infrastructure. The resolution was approved by unanimous consent, and no roll call vote was taken.

The text of the resolution obtained by The Hill shows that Republicans named 25 members to the Agriculture Committee, 34 to Armed Services, 30 to Energy and Commerce, 33 to Financial Services, one to Rules (Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), and 32 to Transportation and Infrastructure.

Former House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence (Ind.) said today that he would soon reintroduce the Broadcaster Freedom Act, and that Congress should reject the idea of regulating political speech in the wake of the Arizona shooting over the weekend. Pence, who spoke on C-SPAN this morning, said his bill would prevent the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from regulating content on the airwaves.

In the last Congress, Pence introduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act of 2009, which would have prevented the FCC from requiring broadcasters to present opposing points of view, a concept known as the Fairness Doctrine.

Pence said he does not want free political discourse to be "another casualty" of the Arizona shootings.