House and Senate Action

The House, which will reconvene on Tuesday afternoon, is the only chamber in session this week. Starting on Wednesday, lawmakers will consider three (of 12) spending bills for fiscal year 2025, including those covering the Department of Homeland Security (H.R. 8752), State and Foreign Operations (H.R. 8771), and Defense (H.R. 8774).  House GOP leaders have set a goal of passing all 12 funding bills by the start of the August recess. The full legislative calendar can be accessed here.

It should be noted that both chambers will be on recess next week for the Independence Day holiday.

Congress Approves Legislation to Support Local Fire Districts

On June 18, the Senate gave final approval to legislation – the Fire Grants and Safety Act (S. 870) – that would reauthorize the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), as well as two programs that benefit local fire districts, namely the Assistance for Firefighters Grants (AFG) program and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program. The programs, which were set to expire this year, are used by local fire districts to address staffing needs, purchase equipment, develop fire training and education programs, and improve emergency medical services.

Bipartisan Legislation Introduced to Strengthen Wildfire Mitigation and Resilience

On June 20, Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Mitt Romney (R-UT) introduced legislation – the Enhancing Mitigation and Building Effective Resilience (EMBER) Act (S. 4628) – based on recommendations from the Wildfire Mitigation and Management Commission. The 50-person commission, with representatives from state and federal agencies, the private sector, nonprofits, and firefighters, made 148 recommendations. S. 4628 incorporates 29 of those recommendations. A one-page summary of the bill can be accessed here. It should be noted that another bill to address the Commission’s recommendations was recently introduced by Congressman Josh Harder (D-CA).

Relevant Hearings and Markups

House Appropriations Committee: This week, five (of 12) subcommittees will consider their fiscal year 2025 spending bills. The measures scheduled to be considered include: Commerce-Justice-Science (Wednesday), Labor-Health and Human Services (Thursday), Transportation-Housing and Urban Development (Thursday), Interior-Environment (Friday), and Energy and Water (Friday). More details on the committee activity can be accessed here.

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee: The committee is scheduled to mark up its bipartisan Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) reauthorization bill on Wednesday morning. The legislation, which authorizes programs and projects under the purview of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Program, is typically renewed by Congress on a biennial basis. This year's House bill includes 159 new feasibility studies for locally proposed projects, as well as 12 projects that have been reviewed by the Corps and have culminated in a final report to Congress. 

House Science, Space, and Technology Committee: On Tuesday morning, the panel will hear from Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk on the department’s fiscal year 2025 budget request. More information on the hearing can be found here.

House Transportation and Infrastructure: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will appear before the panel on Thursday morning to discuss the president’s fiscal year 2025 budget request for the department. Additional details on the hearing can be found here.