| Past Issues/Subscribe | Employment | neppa.org | Legislative Update | Advertise | December 2014 |
Election Overview; Lame Duck; FERC Nominee
In This Issue:
Election Overview; Lame Duck; FERC Nominee
President Obama and congressional Democrats suffered a resounding defeat in the Nov. 4 mid-term elections, which ushered in a new Republican Senate majority (53-44) and a stronger GOP House (244-188). One Senate seat is yet to be determined with incumbent Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu (LA), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (ENR), in a Dec. 6 run-off against her Republican challenger, Congressman Bill Cassidy (R). In the House, three unresolved races remain.
Immediately following the election, GOP leaders in the House and Senate acknowledged it will be important for them to show that they can govern, and avoid partisan brinksmanship, if they expect to maintain the Senate and win the White House in 2016.
Congress will reconvene for the remainder of its "Lame Duck" session on Dec. 1 and will remain in session through the weekend of December 13, at the latest.
The scope of legislative activity is focused on three major bills: defense authorization legislation, a federal funding bill, and tax "extender" legislation that will continue some expired and expiring tax benefits for businesses, including renewable energy tax credits. Negotiations on the extenders bill will determine whether some of these provisions will be extended permanently or continue through only 2014 or through both 2014 and 2015.
In addition, Senate ENR will hold a confirmation hearing for Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) nominee Colette Honorable on Dec. 4. If confirmed, she will replace John Norris, who left FERC in Aug. 2014.
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