Program Update: Advocacy – August 2011
Filed under: Action,News & Resources,Policy,Program Updates,Program Updates - Advocacy
Congress has been on recess for the majority of the month of August and will resume next week after the Labor Day weekend. When they return next week, they will be very busy, tackling issues such as the debt ceiling, FY12 appropriations, and legislation such as S 1400 (RESTORE Act), which was introduced by Senators Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Richard Shelby (R-AL) shortly before the August recess. The bill calls for the establishment of a Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund, and requires 80 percent of the Clean Water Act fines recovered from the BP Deepwater Horizon lawsuits be used for restoration and economic recovery in the Gulf Coast States, as well as long-term research and monitoring to ensure recovery of the region for future generations. The 12 members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, who will be tasked with coming up with an approximately $1.5 trillion deficit reduction plan over the next 10 years, were announced on August 10, 2011. The membership includes six Senators: Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Senator John Kerry (D-MA), Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA), and Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), as well as six members from the House of Representatives: Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Rep. Jeb. Hensarling (R-TX), Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI), and Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI). The panel has until November 23, 2011 to propose cuts and Congress has until December 23, 2011 to approve legislation. Failure to meet these deadlines will lead to an automatic, across-the-board cut to domestic and defense spending starting in 2013.
