Dear Colleague: Update on the March Work Period
Press Types
Internal
For Immediate Release:
February 25, 2022
Dear Colleague:
I hope that all of you had a fulfilling and productive Presidents’ Week back home with your constituents over the district work period. When we return to the Capitol on February 28, we will begin a busy three-week legislative work period in which the House will continue to meet its obligations and govern responsibly For the People.
As we return to Washington from our districts and from diplomatic missions around the globe, we are resolved as Americans, united with our European and global allies, to stand firmly against Vladimir Putin and his craven plot to expand Russia’s sphere of influence at any cost. Over the next three weeks, we will have a difficult task ahead as we prepare to take further actions, in partnership with our allies, against Putin and his autocratic regime and to offer aid and support to the Ukrainian people while reassuring our NATO allies of America’s unwavering commitment to the alliance’s collective defense. Putin’s premeditated war of choice in Ukraine is already disrupting global markets, including the energy and financial sectors as well as global supply chains, making it all the more urgent for the House and Senate to come together and complete the work of enacting Make It In America legislation.
In February, we came together to pass the America COMPETES Act, which would boost the competitiveness of American workers and businesses. We can be proud that it builds on the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by enacting many of the policies included in the Make It In America plan that so many House Democrats have been developing and promoting for the past eleven years. If the Senate amends the bill we passed, the House will move swiftly to reach agreement on a final version of this critical legislation. Not only will that legislation make our economy less dependent on imports from adversaries like China and Russia; it will also help bring prices down by shoring up supply chains and ensuring that more essential technological components like semiconductors and microchips are made right here in America.
This legislative work period, we will consider an omnibus appropriations package so that the House and Senate can both pass it before the March 11 deadline and build on the momentum of our economic recovery. We owe it to the American people to take every step to avert even the threat of a shutdown, which would be costly and unnecessary, especially at a time when the world needs a strong and confident America. That’s why I was proud that the House passed appropriation bills to fund nearly all of government last summer, well before the start of Fiscal Year 2022, and I want to thank all of you for your work during that busy time so that we could give the Senate every opportunity to consider appropriations without the need for continuing resolutions. Unfortunately, that did not come to pass, but I am glad that House and Senate appropriators have come together to reach agreement on topline numbers critical to producing an omnibus that we can enact in early March.
Other legislation that Members can expect to be brought to the Floor this Month include Chairman Mark Takano’s H.R. 3967 the Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (“Honoring our PACT”) Act, legislation to address the issue of burn pits and other toxic exposures to the long-term health impact on service-members and veterans. This legislation has broad support from across the House and will deliver on a key promise by our Majority to care for those who defend our nation in uniform – not only those who live with health problems from burn pits but also those who were exposed to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War and contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune, among others. The House will also consider H.R. 963, the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal (“FAIR”) Act, sponsored by Rep. Hank Johnson. The FAIR Act, which we passed in the 116th Congress with bipartisan support, would eliminate forced arbitration clauses in employment, civil rights, and consumer cases, promoting transparency and restoring access to justice through the court system. The House will also take up two critical public-safety bills: S. 1543, the STANDUP Act, and S. 854, the Methamphetamine Response Act, both of which have been championed in the House by Rep. Scott Peters. These bills will, respectively, help reduce suicide by providing greater access to mental-health services and designate methamphetamine as an emerging drug threat while requiring the Office of National Drug Control Policy to develop a strategy to address its rising abuse.
As I hope you all did, I have been having a very meaningful and uplifting Black History Month. As we bring this month of celebration to a close this coming legislative work period, the House will take action on Rep. Bobby Rush’s H.R. 55, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act; Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman’s H.R. 2116, the CROWN Act; and the Senate-passed companion to a bill introduced by Rep. Gwen Moore, S. 321, to grant a Congressional Gold Medal to the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only all-female, all-Black unit deployed overseas during the Second World War. We will also consider a resolution by Rep. Alma Adams condemning the recent bomb threats against Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
One of the topics of discussion that came up during our Black History Month event in Maryland – and that surely has been raised with many of you throughout this month – is the danger posed by Republican efforts to suppress the right to vote – what many are calling “Jim Crow 2.0.” Together, we passed the John R. Lewis Freedom to Vote Act in January, and we will continue to push the Senate to take action on this essential legislation. The best way Congress can honor Black History is to ensure that our nation does not turn the clock back to a time when African Americans were barred from participating fully and equally in our democracy.
As we approach Women’s History Month, it is my hope that our Senate colleagues will take up and pass the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, which the House passed with bipartisan support last March. This critical legislation, originally championed by then-Senator Joe Biden, is necessary to enhance legal protections and resources to victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of gender-based violence.
As a reminder, the House and Senate will convene in a joint session to receive the President for the State of the Union address on March 1. Also, I previously announced that votes will no longer be held on March 10, in order to accommodate the Democratic Issues Conference, which will build on the success of the recent virtual messaging summit. I encourage all Democratic Members to participate in the conference, which is critical to shaping our planning and messaging for the year ahead. I will continue to provide sufficient advance notice of any other changes to the House’s schedule. Thankfully, we are seeing strong declines in infection from the Omicron wave of COVID-19, I continue to urge Members to take every precaution before and during travel back to Washington, including testing when advised, wearing masks when appropriate, and observing local public health guidelines.
I look forward to seeing all of you back in Washington on February 28, and I thank you for your work this month sharing with your constituents all the ways that our Majority continues to deliver results for them and we are making sure that theirs is truly a government of the people, by the people, and For the People.
Sincerely,
STENY H. HOYER
House Majority Leader
I hope that all of you had a fulfilling and productive Presidents’ Week back home with your constituents over the district work period. When we return to the Capitol on February 28, we will begin a busy three-week legislative work period in which the House will continue to meet its obligations and govern responsibly For the People.
As we return to Washington from our districts and from diplomatic missions around the globe, we are resolved as Americans, united with our European and global allies, to stand firmly against Vladimir Putin and his craven plot to expand Russia’s sphere of influence at any cost. Over the next three weeks, we will have a difficult task ahead as we prepare to take further actions, in partnership with our allies, against Putin and his autocratic regime and to offer aid and support to the Ukrainian people while reassuring our NATO allies of America’s unwavering commitment to the alliance’s collective defense. Putin’s premeditated war of choice in Ukraine is already disrupting global markets, including the energy and financial sectors as well as global supply chains, making it all the more urgent for the House and Senate to come together and complete the work of enacting Make It In America legislation.
In February, we came together to pass the America COMPETES Act, which would boost the competitiveness of American workers and businesses. We can be proud that it builds on the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by enacting many of the policies included in the Make It In America plan that so many House Democrats have been developing and promoting for the past eleven years. If the Senate amends the bill we passed, the House will move swiftly to reach agreement on a final version of this critical legislation. Not only will that legislation make our economy less dependent on imports from adversaries like China and Russia; it will also help bring prices down by shoring up supply chains and ensuring that more essential technological components like semiconductors and microchips are made right here in America.
This legislative work period, we will consider an omnibus appropriations package so that the House and Senate can both pass it before the March 11 deadline and build on the momentum of our economic recovery. We owe it to the American people to take every step to avert even the threat of a shutdown, which would be costly and unnecessary, especially at a time when the world needs a strong and confident America. That’s why I was proud that the House passed appropriation bills to fund nearly all of government last summer, well before the start of Fiscal Year 2022, and I want to thank all of you for your work during that busy time so that we could give the Senate every opportunity to consider appropriations without the need for continuing resolutions. Unfortunately, that did not come to pass, but I am glad that House and Senate appropriators have come together to reach agreement on topline numbers critical to producing an omnibus that we can enact in early March.
Other legislation that Members can expect to be brought to the Floor this Month include Chairman Mark Takano’s H.R. 3967 the Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (“Honoring our PACT”) Act, legislation to address the issue of burn pits and other toxic exposures to the long-term health impact on service-members and veterans. This legislation has broad support from across the House and will deliver on a key promise by our Majority to care for those who defend our nation in uniform – not only those who live with health problems from burn pits but also those who were exposed to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War and contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune, among others. The House will also consider H.R. 963, the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal (“FAIR”) Act, sponsored by Rep. Hank Johnson. The FAIR Act, which we passed in the 116th Congress with bipartisan support, would eliminate forced arbitration clauses in employment, civil rights, and consumer cases, promoting transparency and restoring access to justice through the court system. The House will also take up two critical public-safety bills: S. 1543, the STANDUP Act, and S. 854, the Methamphetamine Response Act, both of which have been championed in the House by Rep. Scott Peters. These bills will, respectively, help reduce suicide by providing greater access to mental-health services and designate methamphetamine as an emerging drug threat while requiring the Office of National Drug Control Policy to develop a strategy to address its rising abuse.
As I hope you all did, I have been having a very meaningful and uplifting Black History Month. As we bring this month of celebration to a close this coming legislative work period, the House will take action on Rep. Bobby Rush’s H.R. 55, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act; Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman’s H.R. 2116, the CROWN Act; and the Senate-passed companion to a bill introduced by Rep. Gwen Moore, S. 321, to grant a Congressional Gold Medal to the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only all-female, all-Black unit deployed overseas during the Second World War. We will also consider a resolution by Rep. Alma Adams condemning the recent bomb threats against Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
One of the topics of discussion that came up during our Black History Month event in Maryland – and that surely has been raised with many of you throughout this month – is the danger posed by Republican efforts to suppress the right to vote – what many are calling “Jim Crow 2.0.” Together, we passed the John R. Lewis Freedom to Vote Act in January, and we will continue to push the Senate to take action on this essential legislation. The best way Congress can honor Black History is to ensure that our nation does not turn the clock back to a time when African Americans were barred from participating fully and equally in our democracy.
As we approach Women’s History Month, it is my hope that our Senate colleagues will take up and pass the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, which the House passed with bipartisan support last March. This critical legislation, originally championed by then-Senator Joe Biden, is necessary to enhance legal protections and resources to victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of gender-based violence.
As a reminder, the House and Senate will convene in a joint session to receive the President for the State of the Union address on March 1. Also, I previously announced that votes will no longer be held on March 10, in order to accommodate the Democratic Issues Conference, which will build on the success of the recent virtual messaging summit. I encourage all Democratic Members to participate in the conference, which is critical to shaping our planning and messaging for the year ahead. I will continue to provide sufficient advance notice of any other changes to the House’s schedule. Thankfully, we are seeing strong declines in infection from the Omicron wave of COVID-19, I continue to urge Members to take every precaution before and during travel back to Washington, including testing when advised, wearing masks when appropriate, and observing local public health guidelines.
I look forward to seeing all of you back in Washington on February 28, and I thank you for your work this month sharing with your constituents all the ways that our Majority continues to deliver results for them and we are making sure that theirs is truly a government of the people, by the people, and For the People.
Sincerely,
STENY H. HOYER
House Majority Leader