Lame Duck Congressional Coverage and Election Impact to Come…

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Lame Duck Congressional Coverage and Election Impact to Come…

With members of Congress away from the nation’s capital, meeting with constituents and seeking reelection (all members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and one-third of the U.S. Senate are up for reelection), late October and early November serve as the calm before the storm of legislative activity that occurs from mid-November through December, when members of Congress will hastily seek to pass legislation during the so-called “lame duck” period after the elections. This period is special because it represents the last chance to vote on legislation for Members of Congress who lost their reelection bids or are retiring. This is also the last opportunity for legislation to be acted upon this year – any bills that didn’t make it into law would have to be reintroduced next year, when the new Congress begins and new members take office and those not up for reelection return to legislative work. The painstaking and time-consuming process of drafting legislation, moving it through one or more committees in the House and Senate, lining up support, and scheduling votes will have to be repeated for these bills.

A summary of congressional activity in the beginning of the lame duck and the likely impacts of the elections on ASHRAE interests will be included in the next edition of the ASHRAE Government Affairs Update, which will be featured in the next SPRAYFOAM PRO Newswire.