WATERLOO – Here is a summary of the votes cast by local members of Congress over the past week.
The Fixing Our Regulatory Mayhem Upsetting Little Americans Act (S. 4261), which suspends duties and other restrictions on the importation of infant formula to address the infant formula shortage in the United States, was also approved by the Senate by voice vote in addition to the week’s roll call votes.
Home Votes
Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Training Act (H.R. 7777), introduced by Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., has been approved by the House.
The proposed legislation would create a programme at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to educate cybersecurity professionals on how to defend industrial control systems online.
It “will assist strengthen small enterprises, particularly those in vital infrastructure, who do not yet have cybersecurity defence troops receiving that training,” according to Swalwell. On June 21, 368 people voted in favour with 47 against. Against: Cawthorn (R-NC) (11th).
House Vote 2: MENTAL HEALTH: The Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-Being Act (H.R. 7666), introduced by Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey, has been approved by the House.
The legislation would extend the eligibility for enrollment in opioid treatment programmes and reauthorize several mental and behavioural health programmes until fiscal 2027.
According to Pallone, the renewal “will promote the long-term mental health and well-being of millions of Americans, their families, and communities.” On June 22, 402 people voted in favour with 20 against. CAWTHORNE, R-NC (11th).
Health Innovations Agency, House Vote 3 The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Health Act (H.R. 5585), sponsored by Rep. Anna G. Eshoo, D-Calif., was passed by the House.
The agency would fund research into novel health and medical technologies, similar to other existing agencies for the military and energy.
About her hopes for the organisation, Eshoo stated: “We will have succeeded even if only one terrible disease is addressed and treated. We’ll perform better than that, in my opinion.” 336 people voted in favour of the measure on June 22. CAWTHORNE, R-NC (11th).
House Vote 4: ACTIVE SHOOTERS: The Active Shooter Alert Act (H.R. 6538), introduced by Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., was defeated in the House.
The measure would have created an Active Shooter Alert Communications Network within the Justice Department, and the network would have worked with local and state governments to develop systems for delivering alerts about active shooters.
According to Cicilline, the network “would provide access to a vital tool for law enforcement departments around the country, regardless of their size or location” by leveraging federal resources to build up an alert system. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, one of the bill’s opponents, claimed that state and local governments already had effective alert systems and that a federal programme would only serve to “foment Democrat fear-mongering that guns are an ever-present menace,” rather than promoting public safety.
A two-thirds majority was needed to pass the measure, which was approved on June 22 with 259 in favour and 162 against. Against: Cawthorn (R-NC) (11th).
House Vote 5: SCHOOL MEALS: The Keep Kids Fed Act (S. 2089), introduced by Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, has been approved by the House. With the passage of the bill, waivers for federal child nutrition programmes would be extended.
These waivers, which have been used to provide free school meals, summer meals, and child care subsidies, were initially issued in response to the early 2020 closure of school classrooms.
The extensions “would take a key step to assist child nutrition programmes and prevent children from going hungry amid the continuing public health emergency,” according to a backer, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va. On June 23, 376 people voted in favour with 42 against. Against: Cawthorn (R-NC) (11th).
Vote 6 in the House on College Mental Health: To compel the Education Department to support mental health and suicide prevention plans at colleges and universities, the House has enacted the Enhancing Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Through Campus Planning Act (H.R. 5407), which was introduced by Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa.
“In the last few years, young Americans have encountered extraordinary hardships leading to a growth in mental health demands,” Wild said of the demand for such insurance. On June 23, 405 people voted in favour with 16 against. CAWTHORNE, R-NC (11th).
Vote 7 in the House: COLLEGIATE DRUGS: The Campus Prevention and Recovery Services for Students Act (H.R. 6493), introduced by Representative Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-New Mexico, has been approved by the House.
The federal programme for preventing alcohol and illicit drug addiction at colleges and universities would be renewed through fiscal 2028 under this bill, and $15 million would be allocated annually for grants and other initiatives to do so.
For countless pupils across the United States, it “will help to cut the bonds of addiction and allow access to treatment and prevention,” according to Leger Fernandez. On June 23, 371 people voted in favour with 49 against. Against: Cawthorn (R-NC) (11th).
House Vote 8: SEX AND DEMOGRAPHICS SURVEYS: The LGBTQI+ Data Inclusion Act (H.R. 4176), introduced by Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., has been approved by the House. According to the proposed legislation, surveys that collect demographic data must ask questions about non-heterosexuals.
The LGBTQI+ community ought to be heard and seen so that public policy can better represent their needs, according to Grijalva. “Federal surveys are no place to approach the American people or their children with intrusive inquiries and worries about sexual orientation or gender identity,” said an opponent, Rep. James Comer, R-Kentucky. On June 23, 220 people voted in favour and 201 against. Against: Cawthorn (R-NC) (11th).
Senate Action
Senate Vote 1: CALIFORNIA JUDGE: Ana Isabel de Alba’s appointment as a judge on the U.S. district court for the eastern district of California has been approved by the Senate. De Alba served as a private practice attorney for ten years before she was appointed a superior court judge in Fresno County in 2018.
De Alba was referred to as “a devoted, fair, and universally regarded public servant, respected by her colleagues” by supporter Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif. On June 21, 53 people voted in favour and 45 against. Burr and Tillis both cast no votes.
Vote 2 in the Senate: Consumer Products Commissioner The nomination of Mary Boyle to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for a seven-year term ending in fall 2025 has been approved by the Senate.
Boyle has worked at the CPSC for more than ten years and is currently the commission’s executive director. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a supporter from Minnesota, said Boyle “is extremely knowledgable about CPSC operations and consumer product safety.
She will be equipped to lead from day one, I’m certain of it.” Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican from Mississippi who opposed the measure, raised “serious concerns about severe administrative errors at the agency during Ms Boyle’s tenure there, including the inappropriate publication of unredacted manufacturer and customer data.” On June 22, there were 50 yes votes and 48 no votes. Burr and Tillis both cast no votes.
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Senate Vote 3: GUN VIOLENCE: The Senate has approved an amendment to the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (S. 2938) that would establish several policies aimed at reducing mass shootings, such as funding for behavioural health clinics, support for school safety initiatives, and limitations on the possession of firearms by ex-offenders and people who have been determined by a court to have a mental illness.
Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, who supported the amendment, stated that it aimed to “make meaningful changes in communities across this country—safer, healthier neighbourhoods; stronger, more secure schools; and saving lives.”
Sen. Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, who opposed the measures, claimed that they would violate “the constitutional right to bear arms for the innocent.” On June 23, 65 people voted in favour and 33 against. YES: Burr (R-NC) and Tillis (R-NC).
