HOUSE VOTES

MEDICARE AND STIMULUS SPENDING: The House has agreed to the Senate amendment to the Medicare Sequester Act (H.R. 1868), sponsored by Rep. John A. Yarmuth, D-Ky., to exempt Medicare from pay-as-you-go budget limits in the most recent COVID-19 stimulus spending law, and provide higher Medicaid payments to California’s public hospitals. Yarmuth said the exemption “will ensure our healthcare providers–who have been on the front lines of this pandemic–are supported during this difficult time.” The vote, on April 13, was 384 yeas to 38 nays.

YEAS: Chellie Pingree, D-1st District; Jared Golden, D-2nd District

DRUGS IN SPORTS: The House has passed the United States Anti-Doping Agency Reauthorization Act (H.R. 172), sponsored by Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., to authorize funding for the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency through fiscal 2030, and make changes to the agency to campaign against performance-enhancing drugs in amateur athletics. The vote, on April 14, was 381 yeas to 37 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

FOOD ALLERGIES: The House has passed the Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research Act (S. 578), sponsored by Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., to add sesame to the list of major food allergens regulated by the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) and require HHS to report to Congress on its food allergy activities. A bill supporter, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., said it “will provide consumers with the information they need to protect themselves and their families from certain dangerous and life-threatening allergic reactions.” The vote, on April 14, was 415 yeas to 11 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden)

BIOSIMILAR DRUGS: The House has passed the Advancing Education on Biosimilars Act (S. 164), sponsored by Sen. Margaret Wood Hassan, D-N.H., to direct the Food and Drug Administration to increase efforts to educate health care providers and the public on biosimilars and biological products. Biosimilars are similar to or interchangeable with other health treatment biological products that are made by a living organism. A supporter, Rep. Gus M. Bilirakis, R-Fla., said education efforts “can increase adoption of these lower cost alternative therapies when appropriate and drive down drug costs for Americans across the country.” The vote, on April 14, was 412 yeas to 8 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

FINANCIAL SCAMS: The House has passed the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act (H.R. 1215), sponsored by Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del. The bill would create a Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group, charged with developing educational materials for companies on how to prevent scams that target the elderly, and create an advisory office at the Federal Trade Commission with similar goals. The vote, on April 15, was 396 yeas to 13 nays.

YEAS: Pingree

NOT VOTING: Golden

CARBON MONOXIDE: The House has passed the Nicholas and Zachary Burt Memorial Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act (H.R. 1460), sponsored by Rep. Ann M. Kuster, D-N.H., to direct the Consumer Product Safety Commission to provide grants for state and tribal governments to install carbon monoxide detectors in schools and residences of low-income families and the elderly. The vote, on April 15, was 362 yeas to 49 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

WAGE DISCRIMINATION: The House has passed the Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R. 7), sponsored by Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Conn., to adopt a variety of measures aimed at preventing wage discrimination on the basis of sex or sexual status. DeLauro said the bill “simply brings the Equal Pay Act into line with the remedies already available for those who are subject to other forms of employment discrimination.” An opponent, Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said it would establish “a nearly impossible burden of proof” on business owners to show that their pay differentials are legitimate, likely resulting in limited work schedule flexibility for women and rigid pay bands as employers try to avoid claims of wage discrimination. The vote, on April 15, was 217 yeas to 210 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

STEM CELL THERAPIES: The House has passed the TRANSPLANT Act (H.R. 941), sponsored by Rep. Doris O. Matsui, D-Calif., to reauthorize the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act through fiscal 2026. The vote, on April 15, was 415 yeas to 2 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden)

CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES: The House has passed the Ensuring Compliance Against Drug Diversion Act (H.R. 1899), sponsored by Rep. H. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., to establish legal authority for government regulations for the distribution of controlled substances, including opioids. Griffith said the bill aimed to “decrease the risk of controlled substances falling into the hands of those who have not been vetted by appropriate regulatory authorities.” The vote, on April 15, was 412 yeas to 5 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

SMALL BUSINESS LOANS: The House has passed the Microloan Improvement Act (H.R. 1502), sponsored by Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., to change the Small Business Administration’s microloan program, including new restrictions on loan repayment terms. The vote, on April 15, was 397 yeas to 16 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

SENATE VOTES

TRANSPORTATION OFFICIAL: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Polly Trottenberg to serve as Deputy Secretary of Transportation. Trottenberg had been New York City’s transportation commissioner since 2014; she was a Transportation Department official during the Obama administration. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said: “Polly has smarts, she has savvy, and she has moxie. She knows how to work with people of all backgrounds to get things done for the American people.” The vote, on April 13, was 82 yeas to 15 nays.

YEAS: Susan Collins, R-Maine; Angus King, I-Maine

STATE DEPARTMENT: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Wendy Sherman to serve as Deputy Secretary of State. Sherman was Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs from 2011 to 2015, and was a State Department official in the Clinton administration. The vote, on April 13, was 56 yeas to 42 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

REGULATING FINANCIAL MARKETS: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Gary Gensler to serve as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gensler chaired the Commodity Futures Trading Commission during the Obama administration, and previously was a Treasury Department official. A supporter, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Gensler “understands we need to ensure confidence and stability in our markets as the foundation to grow American businesses and support the workers who make their companies successful.” An opponent, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., cited concerns that as chairman, Gensler would force publicly traded companies to comply with quotas for board members and minor amounts of spending linked to activists’ priorities, and potentially would limit trading in specific volatile securities. The vote, on April 14, was 53 yeas to 45 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Brenda Mallory to serve as chair of the Council on Environmental Quality. Mallory was the Council’s general counsel for the last three years of the Obama administration. A supporter, Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., said: “She is the kind of experienced, dedicated public servant that we need to lead CEQ at this critical time, not just for the agency but for our nation.” The vote, on April 14, was 53 yeas to 45 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King