Congress Sets Up Process for Considering Trump Border Wall Funding Request

Congress Establishes a Process for Congressional Consideration of Trump Border Wall
Funding Request

Friday, January 25, 2019

McConnell and Pelosi

The House of Representatives and Senate on Friday passed differing versions of a short-term measure providing continued funding for the Department of Homeland Security.  In actuality, though, Friday's floor action on the measure was intended more to provide a vehicle for Congress to negotiate a deal between itself and President Trump on border security funding. 

Friday’s action occurred in connection with H.J. Res. 31, a joint resolution making further continuing appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for fiscal year 2019, and for other purposes.  The House approved the House-passed version of the measure on Thursday, January 24, 2919, by a vote of 231-180.  The Senate acted one day later, approving the amended Senate-passed version of the bill by a voice vote.

Immediately following House and Senate passage of the measure, a conference committee was established to iron out an agreement on border security funding, with the goal of completing a deal by February 15, 2019, when stop-gap funding for numerous federal departments, agencies, and functions expires..

Summary of Measure.  As passed by the House, H.J. Res. 31 would amend the now-expired Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019, extending through February 28, 2019, appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security.  As passed by the Senate, the measure would extend funding through February 15th.  In both instances, temporary Fiscal Year 2019 funding would be provided at the same rate of funding as was provided to the Department in Fiscal Year 2018.

The following summarizes major points of the measures:

• Funding for Physical Barriers.  With respect to border security funding, there are no special provisions in the measure that would increase the amount of funding provided in the Fiscal Year 2018 Omnibus Appropriations Act.

That law provided a total of $1.561 BILLION for construction of barriers and associated technology along the U.S. border with Mexico, including $1.337 BILLION for the actual construction of more than 90 miles of barriers.
 
Under that law, that $1.337 BILLION could be used in Texas and California for the replacement of existing primary pedestrian fencing and the replacement of existing secondary barriers, with $641 of the total to be used for new primary pedestrian and levee fencing in Texas' Rio Grande Valley sector. The law specified that existing barrier designs be used.

• Authorization Matters.  With respect to immigration programs, both versions of the the measure would extend by cross reference the following five expired immigration programs:  
  

1. E-Verify.  the E-Verify Program, created by Sections 401(b) and 403(a) of P.L. 104-208, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA);  
2. Religious Worker Visa.  the Non-Minister Special Immigrant Religious Worker Visa Program, enacted as part of P.L. 101-649, the Immigration Act of 1990 and found in Section 101(a)(27)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act;
3.  Conrad 30 Program.  the Conrad 30 State J-1 Visa Program, enacted in 1994 as part of Public Law 109-477;  
4. Investor Visa.  the EB-5 Investor Visa Regional Centers Program, enacted in 1992 by Section 610 of Public Law 102-395; and
5.  H-2B Visa Program Expansion.  A temporary expansion of the H-2B nonimmigrant program that exempts returning workers from numerical caps.  

• Add-Ons.  The House-passed version of the measure also contains language providing for back pay to furloughed federal employees in the Department of Homeland Security and reimbursing states for funds they have paid to keep federal operations going.
  

Initial House Floor Consideration.  The House took up H.J. Res. 31 under a procedure that precluded the offering of any floor amendments to the bill but permitted Republicans to offer a Motion to Recommit, with or without instructions.. 
 
Debate on the measure was floor managed by House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security Chair Lucile Roybal-Allard (D-CA) for the majority and House Appropriations Committee Ranking Minority Member Kay Granger (R-TX). [1]

• Motion to Recommit with Instructions.  Republicans offered a motion to recommit (MTR) the bill, with instructions.  The instructions contained in the motion seek to require the bill to be reported back to the House with an amendment striking the date February 28, 2019 and inserting January 24, 2019.  That motion failed by a vote of 200-214. [2]
  

In all, 13 Democrats voted in favor of the MTR.  No Republicans voted against it.
 
The 13 Democrats who supported the MTR were Representatives Anthony Brindisi (D-NY), Joe Cunningham (R-SC), Sharice Davids (D-KS), Jared Golden (D-ME), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Kendra Horn (D-OK), Conor Lamb (D-PA), Ben McAdams (D-UT), Max Rose (D-NY), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), and Jeff Van Drew (D-NJ).

• Passage of the Bill.  Once the MTR was disposed of, the House passed the measure by a vote of 231-180. [3]
  

One Democrat voted against the bill; five Republicans voted for it.
 
The Democrat who voted against the bill was Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).    The five Republicans voting in favor of the measure were Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Will Hurd (R-TX), John Katko (R-NY), Chris Smith (R-NJ), and Elise Stefanik (R-NY).

Agreement Between the President and Congress.  On Friday, January 25th, President Trump reached agreement with the bipartisan leadership of the House and Senate on a path to re-open the shuttered departments, agencies, and functions of government.  The path called for enactment of a three week-long continuing appropriations resolution to reopen and the convening of a conference committee to devise a legislative package of border security measures.
 
The vehicle that was chosen to carry the three week-long CR was H.J. Res. 28.  The vehicle chosen to carry the border security provisions was H.J. Res. 31.
 
Senate  Floor Consideration.  After President Trump reached agreement with Congress on a path forward to reopen the shuttered functions of the federal government, the Senate took up H.J. Res. 31, amending it to change the date through which it extends funding to February 15, 2019, and passing the amended measure by a voice vote.
 
Final House  Floor Consideration.  Moments after the Senate passed the amended version of H.J. Res. 31, the House appointed conferees to resolve the differences between the House and Senate versions of the measure.
 
Next Steps.  Now that the House and Senate have passed H.R. differing versions of H.J. Res. 31 and a conference committee has been established, the next step in the process is for the conferees to begin the negotiations aimed at devising a border funding deal that House and Senate Democrats, House and Senate Republicans, and the President can all agree to.

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[1] Click HERE to see a transcript of the House floor debate on H.J. Res. 31, as printed in the January 24, 2019, edition of the Congressional Record
 

[2] House Roll Call Number 50, January 24, 2019
 

[3] House Roll Call Number 51, January 24, 2019

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