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Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) and 33 other House Republicans are hoping to encourage school boards around the country to pray at their meetings, and are leaning on a 1983 Supreme Court case to argue that voluntary prayer at school boards and other deliberative public bodies "should be protected under law and encouraged in society."

Walberg on Thursday introduced a nonbinding resolution, H.Res. 662, which notes that the Supreme Court in Marsh v. Chambers ruled that the practice of opening sessions of deliberative public bodies with prayer is embedded in U.S. tradition. It states that the court found that "invoking divine guidance on a public body entrusted with making the laws is not a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, but rather is simply a tolerable acknowledgement of beliefs widely held among the people of the Nation."

The Obama administration on Tuesday said it would veto a House Republican bill that would reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which the House is expected to approve on Wednesday.

"H.R. 4970 rolls back existing law and removes long-standing protections for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault — crimes that predominately affect women," the White House said in its statement of administration policy. "If the President is presented with H.R. 4970, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill."

Incident could come up during Violence Against Women Act debate; has ties to Trayvon Martin case.

The House next week is expected to approve legislation that would create a federal information network aimed at tracking down and arresting people who injure or kill local, state and federal law enforcement officers.

The National Blue Alert Act, H.R. 365, was introduced more than a year ago by Rep. Michael Grimm (R-N.Y.) and Del. Pedro Pierluisi (D-Puerto Rico). But House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said the House would approve it under a suspension of the rules next week.

They argue the extremely personal questions, which people are legally required to answer, are inappropriate.

Five House Democrats on Thursday honored the life and legacy of martial-arts instructor and actor Bruce Lee for his teachings and his role as a bridge between American and Chinese cultures.

H.Res. 654, offered by Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.), recognizes the "immense impact that Bruce Jun Fan Lee had on American and global popular culture and the important role he played in creating a bridge between cultures, championing values of self-respect, self-discipline and tolerance in our nation, and pioneering and cultivating the genres of martial arts, martial arts films, fitness and philosophy in the United States and the world."

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) late Wednesday assured Republicans that he would not be seeking any additional federal benefits when he gets married in July to Jim Ready.

Frank was debating a Republican amendment to a 2013 spending bill that would prohibit the Department of Justice from spending any money to undermine the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). That federal law defines marriage as between a man and a woman, and the Obama administration has said it would not defend the law in court.

Freshman Rep. Robert Turner (R-N.Y.) on Monday introduced a resolution that calls on the owners of Backpage.com to eliminate the "adult entertainment" section of its online classified advertising pages, which he and other members of Congress have said leads to child prostitution and sex trafficking.

Backpage.com is owned by Village Voice Media Holdings, and Turner's resolution, H.Res. 646, outlines the recent wave of public pressure against Village Voice to terminate its adult-themed classified ads. It also lists eight specific examples of people who were arrested for sex trafficking, all of whom used Backpage.com to advertise.

The House on Monday is expected to approve four bills opening up the Capitol grounds for commemorative ceremonies in May and June.

H.Con.Res. 117 will allow the Capitol to be used for the 31st annual National Peace Officers' Memorial Service on May 15, for the Grand Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police.

Several associations of state and local government officials on Thursday called on House and Senate leaders to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and to do so in a way that gives state officials more flexibility over how to spend federal dollars.

In their May 3 letter, the National Governors Association, National Conference of State Legislatures, and eight other groups representing state and local authorities said the last reauthorization of ESEA came in the No Child Left Behind Act. But while they said that bill had a "commendable intent," it contained flaws that need to be fixed the next time around.