Yesterday, with both the House and Senate in session, there were 79 bills introduced. Three of those bills will receive additional coverage in this blog:
HR 1182 To require the Secretary of Transportation to promulgate regulations relating to the approval of foreign manufacturers of cylinders, and for other purposes. Balderson, Troy [Rep.-R-OH-12]
HR 1212 To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct annual assessments on terrorism threats to the United States posed by terrorist organizations utilizing foreign cloud-based mobile or desktop messaging applications, and for other purposes. Pfluger, August [Rep.-R-TX-11]
S 524 A bill to authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard, and for other purposes. Cruz, Ted [Sen.-R-TX]
Hazmat Transportation
HR 1182 looks like it will be similar to HR 3404, the Compressed Gas Cylinder Safety and Oversight Improvements Act of 2023, that was introduced by Balderson in June 2023. No action was taken on that bill in the 118th Congress. A similar bill, S 1632, the Compressed Gas Cylinder Safety and Oversight Improvements Act of 2023, was introduced in the Senate by then Sen Vance (R,OH). No actions were taken on that bill either.
Counterterrorism
HR 1212 looks like it will be similar to HR 9317, the Counter Terrorgram Act of 2024, that was introduced by Pfluger in August of 2024. No action was taken on that bill in the House.
Coast Guard
The annual Coast Guard Authorization Act is one of the bills normally considered to be a ‘must pass’ piece of legislation, but last year there was no authorization bill passed. In recent history, this legislation made its way into the final omnibus spending bill, but FY 2025’s final spending bill has yet to be introduced, the federal government is still operating on a continuing resolution. Last year Cruz (as the Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee) was a cosponsor on the latest CG authorization bill, S 5468, introduced late in the session; no action was taken on the bill and the text was not published until February, 2025. This year as the Chair of the Committee he becomes the sponsor of the bill crafted by the Committee Staff. There will be significant differences from last year’s bills.
Mention in Passing
There are two bills, probably companion measures, that I would like to mention in passing:
HR 1180 To repeal the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. Clyde, Andrew S. [Rep.-R-GA-9]
S 515 A bill to repeal the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. Lee, Mike [Sen.-R-UT]
Both bills appear to be designed to address the issue raised by the Trump Administration’s attempt to stop spending monies previously appropriated by Congress. Under current law, there are a number of restrictions placed on such actions by the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. There have been numerous attempts at repealing this statute over the years, obviously unsuccessful, but there may be a better chance that one of these bills will be able to negotiate the legislative process.