Energy Issuewatch Newsletter

View in your browser     House GOP looks to revamp Energy Department By Timothy Cama House lawmakers will return from their holiday vacation and kick off their efforts to reorganize the Department of Energy (DOE). The House Energy and Commerce Committee's energy subcommittee has scheduled a Tuesday hearing to gather input on "modernization" of the DOE.  GOP lawmakers say that they want to transform the department, bringing it out of the energy scarcity focus from decades ago and enabling it to solve 21st century problems in the energy sphere. The committee has been working since early last year on the DOE reorganization effort, with Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) taking the lead. "The nation's energy landscape has changed dramatically since the Department of Energy was created in the 1970s amid energy scarcity and global market turmoil," subcommittee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) said in a statement. "It's time we flip the script on the department and ensure its mission can meet 21st Century challenges -- from its continuing nuclear security responsibilities to the geopolitical benefits of energy abundance to the emerging threats of the cyber age," he said. "I'm looking forward to next week's hearing as the committee continues to examine ways to modernize DOE through mission alignment and appropriate authorizations." The hearing will be organized into two panels, one of administration officials and one of outside experts. The Trump administration will be represented at the event by Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, Undersecretary for Science Paul Dabbar, Under Secretary for Nuclear Security Frank Klotz and Under Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes. Elsewhere in the House, the Natural Resources Committee will start debating a proposal to lock in President Trump's decision last month to greatly reduce the size of the Bears Ears National Monument, with a Tuesday hearing. The bill by Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah) would codify the two national monument units that remain after the rollback -- about 15 percent of the original size -- and make them their own monuments: Shash Jáa National Monument and Indian Creek National Monument. It would also formalize a role for a council of nearby American Indian tribal representatives to help manage the monuments, and prohibit mineral development in the area. The coalition of five tribes that pushed for the original Bears Ears monument oppose the bill.    Recent stories: Coal mining deaths double in 2017  EPA removes 7 cleaned-up sites from Superfund list  Pennsylvania halts construction of controversial pipeline  Company sues Washington state for blocking coal export terminal  Trump proposes massive expansion of offshore drilling  Florida's GOP governor opposes Trump move to expand offshore oil drilling  Rubio wants offshore drilling ban extended near Florida  Cold snap arrives at key moment for coal, nuclear power  Congressional watchdog to study Superfund site risks posed by disasters, climate change          Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Energy Newsletters     Forward Energy Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Defense Issuewatch Newsletter

View in your browser     Defense spending ties up budget talks By Rebecca Kheel and Ellen Mitchell The inclement weather caused the Senate's first week back from the holidays to sputter out, but both chambers of Congress are slated to be back in town in the coming week. Lawmakers will jump back into a familiar task -- funding the government before a shutdown deadline. The stopgap spending measure lawmakers passed last month funds the government through Jan. 19, giving Congress eight legislative days to avert a government shutdown. Also looming are across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration, which will go into place in mid-January if Congress does not reach a deal to raise budget caps. This past week, congressional leaders met with White House officials to try to work out a budget deal, but made little progress. Much like previous budget negotiations, one of the main hang-ups appears to be defense vs. nondefense spending. Democrats are again insisting that any increase in defense spending be matched with an equal increase in nondefense spending. "So I hear the majority leader say that he's not for parity. Parity's not a word. It's veterans. It's people who are needing opioid relief. It's working-class folks," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said this week. Immigration and protections for young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children also continue to be a sticking point. Just before the New Year, Defense Secretary James Mattis said the continuing resolutions (CR) have not hurt military readiness, but that anything beyond January could. "So far, the CR probably has not extended the problem, thanks to the additional monies we got last year," Mattis told reporters Dec. 29. "Those monies have been spent, and so productions are still going, but we've got to get a budget by January, or there would be an impact." Think tanks and congressional committees also wake up from their holiday lull next week with a slew of events and hearings. Brookings will hold a discussion on North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, "American and Japanese views of threats and options compared," at 10 a.m. Monday in Washington D.C. http://brook.gs/2CZ5TGV The Surface Navy Association will hold their annual National Symposium featuring top Navy officials, including Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson, from Tuesday through Thursday at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, Va. http://bit.ly/2CJ1kmg A Senate Foreign Relations subpanel will discuss oversight and response to the attacks on U.S. diplomats in Cuba at 10 a.m. Tuesday in Dirksen Senate Office Building, room 419. http://bit.ly/2m2jyFc The House Homeland Security Committee will hear from border security agents on a wide range of security issues at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the House Visitor Center, room 210. http://bit.ly/2qw96Lq Former Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken will speak on "What to Worry About in 2018" at the Council of Foreign Relations at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday in Washington, D.C. http://on.cfr.org/2CGOhlw A House Armed Services subcommittee will hear from outside experts on China's pursuit of emerging and exponential technologies at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday in Rayburn House Office Building, room 2118. http://bit.ly/2CG6nnB Pentagon Comptroller David Norquist will testify before the full House Armed Services Committee on the Defense Department's efforts with the Financial Improvement and Audit Remediation (FIAR) Plan at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Rayburn 2118. http://bit.ly/2CXcPUX The House Veterans Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on home loan churning practices and how veterans are being affected at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Cannon House Office Building, room 334. http://bit.ly/2Ec8SLA The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hear from an outside expert on sanctions and financial pressure as national security tools at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Rayburn 2172. http://bit.ly/2CBbVQh House Foreign Affairs Committee member Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) will speak at the Stimson Center on past and future South Asian crises at 9 a.m. Thursday at the center's headquarters in Washington, D.C. http://bit.ly/2lYuiUT The full Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hear from a State Department official on the U.S. policy in Syria post Islamic State in Iraq and Syria at 10 a.m. Thursday in Dirksen 419. http://bit.ly/2E9FeGL Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) will discusses "President Trump's 'Ultimate Deal': Is Israeli-Palestinian Peace Possible?" at 12 p.m. Thursday at the Heritage Foundation in Washington. http://bit.ly/2Cxj1Sn The think tank New America will hold a discussion on the military prison at Guantanamo Bay under Trump at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday at 740 15th St. NW. http://bit.ly/2lXKR3c   Recent stories: - Senators battle over defense spending in budget talks - Mattis: Military exercises delayed during Olympics to restart at end of March - Senate confirms ex-Lockheed exec for top Pentagon policy role - House Dem calls for bill to restrict Trump's ability to launch preemptive nukes - Trump ratchets up support for demonstrators in Iran - Trump admin suspends security assistance to Pakistan - Trump shifts gears on Afghanistan - Trump nuclear button tweet sparks backlash         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Defense Newsletters     Forward Defense Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Finance Issuewatch Newsletter

View in your browser   Lawmakers jump back into funding fight By Sylvan Lane The House returns Monday from the holiday recess with the threat of yet another government shutdown looming on the horizon. Lawmakers face a Jan. 19 deadline to fund the federal government but are deeply divided on several key issues. Democrats have insisted that a government funding bill include protection for "Dreamers," undocumented immigrants who were illegally brought into the country as children. But those protections are a hard sell for House conservatives. Defense hawks are also fighting a Democratic push to increase defense and nondefense spending equally in a new funding deal. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) following a closed-door meeting between congressional leadership and the White House Thursday said he was "optimistic" a two-year agreement could be reached, but Democrats must set aside their demand on nondefense spending. "Any agreement must provide our armed forces with the resources they need to fulfill their missions. That means setting aside the misguided notion that new defense spending needs to be matched dollar for dollar by new nondefense spending," he said. A deal on top-line spending numbers is needed so that appropriators can begin crafting a massive, trillion-dollar omnibus bill to fund the government through September.   GOP and Democratic leaders, as well as the White House, have been negotiating behind closed doors for weeks, trying to lock down a two-year budget agreement that would cover the rest of 2018 fiscal as well as fiscal 2019. But so far, a deal has remained elusive. Emerging from a meeting Wednesday in Speaker Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) office, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) disclosed almost nothing about the discussion. The Democratic leader said she's hopeful the sides are closer to a deal that would prevent the need for yet another short-term spending patch. "It's all in the works," she said. Lawmakers are also trying to strike a deal on extending the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which had been reauthorized time and again with bipartisan support for decades. Overall, lawmakers face a tight window to advance major legislation before election season kicks in and they head for the campaign trail. McConnell has expressed interest in holding a vote on a bipartisan bill to rollback the Dodd-Frank Act. Last month, the Senate Banking Committee approved the bill offered by Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), by a 16-7 vote. Nearly a dozen Democrats have sponsored the legislation The Crapo bill seems likely to pass the Senate without issue, but House conservatives have already expressed opposition to the compromise. The bill would exempt small and mid-size banks from the most stringent parts of Dodd-Frank and scale back federal oversight of the financial system as a whole. But it contains no efforts to rein in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which would have poisoned the effort for Democrats. The bill's lack of restraints on the CFPB has already cost it support in the House. Several GOP members of the House Financial Services Committee told The Hill that they couldn't support a bill that doesn't touch the bureau, long loathed by Republicans and the finance industry. President Trump will also push for his long-awaited infrastructure package. But the GOP appears divided about whether the rebuilding effort will be a top priority for the party this year. Trump will be hosting Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and others at Camp David this weekend to map out the GOP's 2018 agenda. One of the priorities that will be discussed at the presidential retreat is "rebuilding our nation's crumbling infrastructure," a White House spokeswoman said Friday. On the campaign trail, Trump promised to tackle a $1 trillion infrastructure bill within his first 100 days in office, but the issue slipped to the back burner amid GOP priorities like health care and tax reform last year. Trump, though, hopes to put infrastructure back at the top of his agenda in the New Year. Your week ahead: Tuesday: Senate Banking Committee: Hearing on fighting money laundering and illicit finance, 10 a.m. http://bit.ly/2CxMxrl. House Financial Services Committee: Hearing on "Evaluating CFIUS: Challenges Posed by a Changing Global Economy," 10 a.m. http://bit.ly/2CxBcHW. House Financial Services Committee: Hearing on "Legislative Proposals for a More Efficient Federal Financial Regulatory Regime: Part III," 2 p.m. http://bit.ly/2Cw04zI. Wednesday: House Foreign Affairs Committee: Hearing on "Sanctions and Financial Pressure: Major National Security Tools," 10 a.m. http://bit.ly/2CvcFTO. House Financial Services Committee: Hearing on "A Further Examination of Federal Reserve Reform Proposals," 2 p.m. http://bit.ly/2CwBjTM.   Recap the week with Overnight Finance: Tuesday: Hatch announces retirement from Senate | What you can expect from new tax code | Five ways finance laws could change in 2018 | Peter Thiel bets big on bitcoin Wednesday: Leaders appear to make little progress on funding deal | NY to sue over Trump tax law | Feds block sale of Moneygram to Chinese firm Thursday: SEC warns investors of illegal cryptocurrency trading | Senators fight over defense spending in budget talks | US businesses added 250K jobs in December | Tax filing season to begin Jan. 29   Today's stories: Cohn: Congress will 'hopefully' pass bank reg overhaul within months, by Sylvan Lane Economy adds 148K jobs in December, by Vicki Needham JetBlue joins companies offering $1000 bonus to employees, by John Bowden Treasury aide McGahn, wife of White House counsel, to leave for House panel, by Sylvan Lane Trump poised to take action on Medicaid work requirements, by Peter Sullivan     Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@thehill.com, vneedham@thehill.com, and njagoda@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @VickofTheHill, and @NJagoda.         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Finance Newsletters     Forward Finance Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.

Cybersecurity Issuewatch Newsletter

View in your browser     World grapples with critical computer flaws   By Morgan Chalfant The technology industry and organizations worldwide are reeling from the disclosure of two critical computer hardware vulnerabilities that affect scores of modern devices from PCs to smartphones. Details about the computer processor flaws nicknamed "Meltdown" and "Spectre" came into full focus over the past week and sent programmers at major software companies racing to quickly issue patches to protect affected systems. The issue was initially believed to only affect Intel processors but actually affects a variety of chip vendors. Intel's stock dropped Thursday as a result of the revelations. Microsoft, Google and others have issued emergency patches for their systems, though experts say that applying the fixes could considerably slow down operations. Apple confirmed Thursday that the vulnerabilities affect all iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers and said the company was releasing patches to mitigate both vulnerabilities. Still, experts warn that fully eliminating the threat of Spectre will ultimately warrant a full-fledged redesign of the hardware to boost security. The revelations are expected to create hurdles for businesses and governments large and small, as organizations rush to make sure their systems are patched and the vulnerabilities cannot be exploited. James Norton, a former Department of Homeland Security official and cybersecurity expert, said he would expect the Trump administration to issue guidance to expedite patching across agencies. "The country witnessed the devastating impacts of not implementing security patching with the massive [Office of Personnel Management] hack a few years ago," Norton said. The coming week is sure to bring further speculation about the congressional and federal investigations into Russian interference. The New York Times reported late Thursday that special counsel Robert Mueller has discovered that President Trump tried to prevent Attorney General Jeff Sessions from recusing himself from the investigation even as public pressure mounted for him to do so. Mueller is said to be exploring the issue of obstruction of justice. Meanwhile, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee have been focusing their attention on anti-Trump text messages exchanged by FBI agents who had been working on the Mueller investigation. The messages were recently uncovered by a Justice Department inspector general probe and have fueled GOP charges of political bias at the FBI and on Mueller's team. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) said he reached a deal with the Justice Department this week for documents and interviews related to the messages after sending a terse letter to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Nunes says the documents and interviews are part of a broader effort by Republicans to investigate the controversial Steele dossier that contains salacious allegations about Trump and Russia. Off Capitol Hill, the independent Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is hosting a summit on Wednesday on the 2018 midterm elections that is likely to delve into the issue of voting system cybersecurity. There have been efforts in Congress to pass legislation to help state and local officials shore up their systems in the wake of Russia's efforts to target state voting systems, but none have yet proven fruitful.   If you missed them, here are some of our recent pieces: Critical computer flaws set up security challenge in Washington Experts say US should expect more Iranian cyberattacks Watchdog sues DOJ over decision to show FBI texts to reporters Agencies race to implement email security tool Pressure builds to improve election cybersecurity Comey's original Clinton memo released, cites possible violations Feud erupts between Grassley, Fusion GPS over transcripts Feinstein requests interview with WH social media director amid Russia probe Zuckerberg vows to spend 2018 improving Facebook FTC approves settlement with Lenovo over privacy charges Trump zeroes in on Abedin in latest Clinton attack         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for Cybersecurity Newsletters     Forward Cybersecurity Newsletters       Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.