HOUSE VOTES

2021 BUDGET: The House has passed a resolution (H. Con. Res. 11), sponsored by Rep. John A. Yarmuth, D-Ky., that would establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The 2021 budget would include up to $1.9 trillion of spending on a new coronavirus relief package. Yarmuth said the resolution “was designed solely for one task: providing Congress with the option of using reconciliation to implement the American Rescue Plan and deliver the critical relief we need.” A resolution opponent, Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., called the coronavirus spending a partisan effort by Democrats to give “hundreds of billions of dollars to the very same state governments which are shutting down our schools, telling restaurants they can’t open, and keeping families locked inside.” The vote, on Feb. 2, was 218 yeas to 212 nays.

YEAS: Chellie Pingree, D-1st District

NAYS: Jared Golden, D-2nd District

DISCIPLINING HOUSE MEMBER: The House has passed a resolution (H. Res. 72), sponsored by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schulz, D-Fla., to remove Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., from the House budget and education and labor committees. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 230 yeas to 199 nays.

YEAS: Pingree, Golden

SENATE VOTES

TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Pete Buttigieg to serve as secretary of the Transportation Department. Buttigieg was the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, from 2012 through 2019, and served in the Navy Reserve. A supporter, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said Buttigieg’s experiences “position him well to lead the Biden administration’s ambitious infrastructure and climate-related agenda at the Department of Transportation.” The vote, on Feb. 2, was 86 yeas to 13 nays.

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

HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Alejandro Mayorkas to serve as secretary of the Homeland Security Department. Mayorkas was the director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency and Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security during the Obama administration. A supporter, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said “his experience, qualifications, deep expertise, and integrity will serve our nation well.” An opponent, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said that during his time heading Citizenship and Immigration Services, Mayorkas wrongly pressured agency staff “to break their own rules and turn the law on its head” to grant preferential treatment to foreigners seeking EB-5 investor visas. The vote, on Feb. 2, was 56 yeas to 43 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

AID TO RESTAURANTS: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would create a grant program to aid food service and drinking establishments affected by the novel coronavirus. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 90 yeas to 10 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

TAXES AND COVID-19: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would bar legislation that would increase taxes on small businesses during a national emergency declared in response to a pandemic, such as COVID-19. The vote, on Feb. 4, was unanimous with 100 yeas.

YEAS: Collins, King

AID TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would block illegal immigrants from receiving direct tax-based aid payments linked to COVID-19. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 58 yeas to 42 nays.

YEAS: Collins

NAYS: King

CORONAVIRUS STIMULUS AND THE WEALTHY: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would place a limit on the annual income an individual can earn and receive a COVID-19 stimulus payment. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 99 yeas to 1 nay.

YEAS: Collins, King

PUBLICIZING CORONAVIRUS VACCINES: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Md., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would provide for a public awareness campaign for COVID-19 vaccines. The vote, on Feb. 4, was unanimous with 100 yeas.

YEAS: Collins, King

EDUCATION AND OIL, GAS LEASES: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Tom Barrasso, R-Wyo., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would provide for funding elementary and secondary schools in states that lose revenue due to the federal government’s moratorium on oil and natural gas leasing on public lands and offshore waters. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 98 yeas to 2 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

REGULATING FRACKING: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would bar the Council on Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency from promulgating rules or guidance that bans hydraulic fracturing. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 57 yeas to 43 nays.

YEAS: Collins

NAYS: King

ISRAEL EMBASSY: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would stipulate that the U.S. embassy to Israel remain in its current location in Jerusalem. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 97 yeas to 3 nays.

YEAS: Collins, King

KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would establish a fund to improve U.S. relations with Canada in response to President Biden’s cancellation of construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Alberta into the U.S. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 52 yeas to 48 nays.

YEAS: Collins

NAYS: King

FUNDING POLICE: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would support continued funding of police agencies. The vote, on Feb. 4, was unanimous with 100 yeas.

YEAS: Collins, King

HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNTS: The Senate has passed an amendment sponsored by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5) to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The amendment would expand the ability to enroll in health savings accounts. The vote, on Feb. 4, was 53 yeas to 47 nays.

YEAS: Collins

NAYS: King

2021 BUDGET: The Senate has passed a resolution (S. Con. Res. 5), sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, ID-Vt., to establish the federal government’s fiscal 2021 budget and propose budgetary levels for 2022 through 2030. The 2021 budget would include up to $1.9 trillion of spending on a new coronavirus relief package. The vote, on Feb. 5, was 50 yeas to 50 nays, with Vice President Harris casting a 51st yea vote.

NAYS: Collins

YEAS: King