Federal Issues Update
Less than two weeks into the 114th Congress, House Republican leaders marshaled through the lower chamber legislation (HR 240) blocking President Obama’s Executive Order on immigration, a move conservatives have insisted on since the new policy was announced in November. The immigration provisions were attached to a broader Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spending package via a series of floor amendments. It should be noted that the Department is currently operating under a continuing resolution, which is set to expire on February 27.
Despite swift passage in the House, the future of HR 240 remains uncertain, as Senate Republicans would need the support of at least six Democrats to avoid a filibuster. GOP leaders would need even more Democrats to cross over if several blue-state Republicans decline to endorse the controversial spending package. Moreover, the Obama administration has already threatened to veto the measure if it includes the aforementioned immigration provisions.
Prior to considering the House-passed Homeland Security spending bill, the upper chamber is continuing its consideration of legislation that would authorize construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline (S 1). With more than 60 amendments to the bill filed thus far, and with President Obama promising to veto the measure, the legislation faces a steep uphill climb.
In other developments, House and Senate Republicans headed to Hershey, PA on January 15 for their party’s first joint policy retreat in 10 years. While annual policy retreats are typically not bicameral, GOP leaders opted to bring all of their members together to discuss strategies for moving legislation through the Republican-controlled Congress.
For their part, Senate Democrats held their own retreat in Baltimore, MD this past week where party leaders focused their agenda primarily on the economy, the national political environment, and how they will approach their new role in the minority. President Obama made an appearance at the conference to discuss legislative and political strategies for 2015. House Democrats will hold their annual policy retreat later this month.
Carcieri /Fee-to-Trust Reform
Congressman Tom Cole (R-OK), the co-chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has reintroduced legislation that would overturn the Supreme Court’s Carcieri v Salazardecision. In Carcieri, the Court ruled that the secretary of the Interior’s trust land acquisition authority is limited to those tribes that were under federal jurisdiction at the time of the passage of the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of 1934. Since the Court’s ruling in 2009, congressional supporters of Indian Country have made enactment of a Carcieri fix a top legislative priority.
It should be noted that the bill (HR 249), which is identical to legislation that Representative Cole introduced in the previous Congress, would restore the Interior Secretary’s authority to take land into trust for all tribes. The measure, however, would not make any modifications to the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ fee-to-trust process. CSAC has continued to oppose any Carcierifix bill that does not include long-overdue reforms in the land-into-trust process.
The legislation has been referred to the House Natural Resources Committee. Several members of the California congressional delegation, from both sides of the aisle, serve on the panel.
Waters of the U.S.
On Thursday, January 15, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a document that provides the scientific basis for the Agency’s controversial “Waters of the U.S.” (WOUS) proposal. The document, entitled Connectivity of Streams and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Evidence, will be used by EPA to further justify the pending WOUS rule, which is being jointly developed by EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
According to EPA, the proposed rule does not pertain to bodies of water that have not historically been subject to federal regulation; instead, the rule intends to clarify which waterways and wetlands fall under the purview of the Clean Water Act. Critics of the proposal, however, including many state and local governments and agricultural interests, contend that the rule would vastly expand federal regulatory oversight and permitting requirements, resulting in unnecessary delays to both public works projects and private development. To view a copy of CSAC’s WOUS comment letter to the EPA, please click on the following link: CSAC WOUS Comment Letter
On Capitol Hill, the EPA-Corps rule has come under intense fire from members of both political parties who have accused the agencies of regulatory overreach. Last year, lawmakers approved legislation (HR 5078) that would have barred the Obama administration from moving forward with the WOUS rule. Additionally, both the House fiscal year 2015 Interior appropriations bill (HR 5171) and the 2015 Energy & Water spending legislation (HR 4923) included language that would have precluded EPA and the Corps from spending any funds on WOUS implementation.
Secure Rural Schools
On January 15, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) announced that it will distribute more than $50 million to 746 timber counties under the Twenty-Five Percent Fund Act of 1908. While the funding is welcome news, it should be noted that this will replace payments made under the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program. Incidentally, once SRS expired, the law reverted to the 1908 Act, which requires that the federal government share with states 25 percent of the receipts generated on national forests.
Of the $50 million that will be distributed in the coming weeks, California counties will receive about $8.7 million. Last year, by comparison, approximately $300 million was allocated under the SRS program, with $35.6 million going to California counties. Furthermore, unlike SRS, the 25-percent payments do not allow states to allocate funds for work similar to Title II (conservation work on national forests) or Title III (county projects for Firewise programs, emergency services or community wildfire protection plans).
Looking ahead, House Republican leaders have assured their colleagues that an SRS extension will be considered an early priority for the new Congress. However, unless lawmakers retroactively provide funding for the program, the 1908 Act will guide 2014 distribution of payments.
Remote Sales Tax
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) this week circulated a long-anticipated discussion draft on online sales tax enforcement. Among other things, Chairman Goodlatte’s proposal would require Internet vendors to collect their own home state sales taxes and remit those proceeds to the customer’s home state. Vendors in states without a statewide sales taxes would have the option of reporting an interstate sale to the buyer’s state or collecting a flat rate that is based on the lowest combined state and local sales tax rate. In addition, the draft measure would only allow retailers to be audited by their own state, addressing a key concern for Goodlatte and other critics of previous proposals. Finally, it should be noted that the proposal does not include an exemption for small businesses.
There are a number of fundamental differences between Goodlatte’s discussion draft and legislation – the Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA; S 743) – which CSAC endorsed and the Senate approved in the previous Congress. For example, the MFA would give states the ability to collect sales taxes from out-of-state Internet retailers based on the destination of the purchase, rather than the origin of the sale. The MFA also includes language exempting retailers with less than $1 million in annual remote sales from any tax collection requirements.
Goodlatte’s proposal effectively reopens the debate on online sales tax collection and will likely serve as a starting point for discussions on the issue later this year.