Budget Resolution Vote Today
The Senate will take up a budget resolution bill on the floor today, beginning at 3 PM. The budget resolution will include reconciliation instructions making way for a tax reform process that will result in significant tax cuts for the wealthy at the expense of decreased spending on programs serving low-income Americans, such as WIC.
Lobbying Action:
NWA opposes the Senate Budget Resolution. We urge you to call your Senators today to ask them to vote against it. You can find contact information for your Senators here.
Bipartisan Health Care Deal
Senators Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Patty Murray (D-WA), the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, have reached a bipartisan agreement to address cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The agreement would provide federal funding for the CSRs for two years in exchange for increased state flexibility under the ACA, including speedier approval of certain waivers.
It is not clear whether or not Republican leadership in the House or Senate will support the agreement. President Trump has expressed tentative support for the deal, but has also stated that in the long-run he supports state block grants in lieu of federal CSR payments. President Trump stopped CSR payments last Thursday. If passed, this bill would resume them.
Lobbying Action:
NWA supports the Alexander-Murray agreement. We encourage you to call your representatives in the House and Senate to support the bill. Find contact information for your Representative here and for your Senators here.
As a reminder: The above actions are considered lobbying. It is your democratic right to lobby. Lobbying is a particular type of advocacy involving an attempt to influence specific legislation by communicating directly with an elected official or his or her staff. Each state has specific laws for state employees about lobbying efforts while on the job. We recommend limiting lobbying efforts to coffee breaks, lunch breaks, after hours and other times not considered “work time.”