By Voterama In Congress
Here’s how Arizona members of Congress voted on major issues in the week ending Nov. 17.
House
Flood Insurance Renewal: The House on Nov. 14 voted, 237-189, to renew the National Flood Insurance Program through fiscal 2022 under terms that allow private-sector competition, permit businesses to leave the program and require residential premium hikes of 6.5 percent annually. A yes vote was to send HR 2874 to the Senate.
Voting yes: Martha McSally, R-2, Paul Gosar, R-4, Andy Biggs, R-5, David Schweikert, R-6, Trent Franks, R-8, Kyrsten Sinema, D-9
Voting no: Tom O’Halleran, D-1, Raul Grijalva, D-3, Ruben Gallego, D-7
Hurricane Sandy Claims: The House on Nov. 14 rejected, 190-236, a bid by Democrats to shelve HR 2874 (above) until the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general certify that thousands of disputed disaster claims from Hurricane Sandy in 2012 have been resolved. A yes vote backed the motion.
Yes: O’Halleran, Grijalva, Gallego, Sinema
No: McSally, Gosar, Biggs, Schweikert, Franks
$700 Billion for Military in 2018: The House on Nov. 14 adopted, 356-70, the conference report on a $700 billion military authorization for fiscal 2018 that provides $66 billion for combat abroad, funds a 2.4 percent pay raise for uniformed personnel, officially declares climate change a U.S. and global security threat and requires the administration to develop a strategy to counter Russia’s undermining of Western democracies. (HR 2810)
Yes: O’Halleran, McSally, Gosar, Biggs, Schweikert, Gallego, Franks, Sinema
Not voting: Grijalva
Floor Debate on Dreamers’ Bill: The House on Nov. 14 voted, 234-189, to block a Democratic bid to force floor debate on a bill now in committee that would grant permanent legal status to the so-called “dreamers” who were brought illegally to the U.S. as children. The bill would grant relief to up to 800,000 undocumented aliens who were younger than 18 when they entered the United States and have met several conditions including continuous residency for at least four years. A yes vote was in opposition to floor debate on HR 3440.
Yes: McSally, Gosar, Biggs, Schweikert, Franks
No: O’Halleran, Grijalva, Gallego, Sinema
Republican Tax Overhaul: Voting 227 for and 205 against, the House on Nov. 16 passed a GOP-drafted bill (HR 1) that would reduce business and personal taxes by $1.5 trillion through fiscal 2027 while simplifying the tax code, increasing standard deductions and making numerous other changes to tax rules. A yes vote was to pass the bill over Democratic arguments that it is heavily tilted in favor of corporations, investment firms and wealthy households.
Yes: McSally, Gosar, Biggs, Schweikert, Franks
No: O’Halleran, Grijalva, Gallego, Sinema
State and Local Tax Deductions: The House on Nov. 15 blocked, 234-193, a Democratic move to effectively strip HR 1 (above) of its provisions to end the deductibility on federal returns of state and local income and sales taxes and cap the deductibility of property taxes on federal returns at $10,000. A yes vote opposed a motion aimed at retaining state and local income and sales tax deductions.
Yes: McSally, Gosar, Biggs, Schweikert, Franks
No: O’Halleran, Grijalva, Gallego, Sinema
Senate
Steven Bradbury Confirmation: The Senate on Nov. 14 confirmed, 50-47, Steven G. Bradbury, a partner in a Washington law firm, as general counsel for the Department of Transportation. The nomination proved controversial over Bradbury’s authorship of memos used by the George W. Bush administration to justify its “enhanced interrogation,” or torture, of detainees suspected of terrorism. He was acting head of the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel at the time. A yes vote was to confirm Bradbury.
Yes: Jeff Flake, R
No: John McCain, R
David Zatezalo, Mine Safety Regulator: The Senate on Nov. 15 confirmed, 52-48, David Zatezalo, a former coal executive and miner, to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Democratic critics noted that his company, Kentucky-based Rhino Resources, clashed repeatedly with Obama administration regulators over health and safety violations in 2011-2012 while he was its CEO. A yes vote was to confirm the nominee.
Yes: McCain, Flake
Joseph Otting, Comptroller of the Currency: The Senate on Nov. 16 confirmed, 54-43, Joseph M. Otting to head the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, an agency of the Treasury Department that oversees national banks and federal savings and loans. Otting was president and CEO of OneWest Bank between 2010-2015, working with bank founder and now Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin. A yes vote was to confirm the nominee.
Yes: McCain, Flake
