PSW Weekly Round-Up - 5/11

Legislative Update

House. The House will vote this week on legislation that would allow for year-round sales of E15, a fuel blend made from 85% gasoline and 15% ethanol. Gas stations are prohibited from selling E15 in the summer because of Clean Air Act requirements designed to limit smog, but the Environmental Protection Agency can issue emergency waivers. With oil prices rising after the start of the Iran war, EPA on March 25 issued a waiver that took effect May 1 and expires May 20. If the year-round E15 legislation clears the House, it will have an uphill battle to pass in the Senate. The House this week will also vote on its first FY 2027 spending measure, the Military Construction-VA appropriations bill.

Senate. The Senate will vote on a package of 49 nominations and will also vote on the two nominations of Kevin Warsh to be a member of the Federal Reserve Board and to serve as chairman.

Reconciliation. Two Senate committees plan to take the next steps on reconciliation legislation designed to provide funding for ICE and border protection programs. Both the Homeland Security and the Judiciary panels have indicated they will mark up their portions of the legislation, but exactly when that will happen is unclear. The Judiciary Committee has posted a notice that the reconciliation measure will be considered tomorrow, May 12, but Democrats can request a one-week delay. Homeland Security is reportedly looking at a May 19 markup, but there’s been no formal announcement.

Once the committees approve their sections, the Budget Committee will package the two parts together and send the bill to the Senate floor for debate and a vote-a-rama on amendments. Floor debate on a reconciliation measure is limited to 20 hours, evenly divided between the parties, but Republicans can be expected to use much less than their allotted 10 hours. Both chambers are planning to be out of session the last week of May for Memorial Day, with no House action scheduled for Friday, May 22, leaving the House with little time to vote following expected Senate passage.

Committee Action of Note

Tuesday, May 12

• House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense Budget Hearing: Department of Defense
• House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense Budget Hearing: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps
• House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Budget Hearing: Department of Housing and Urban Development
• House Rules Committee Meeting to formulate a rule on measures including H.R. 8469, the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2027
• Senate Judiciary Committee Markup: Proposed budget reconciliation
• Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense Hearing: Review of the President’s FY27 Budget Request for the Department of Defense
• Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing: "Closed/Open: Testimony from the Army in review of the Defense Authorization Request for FY27 and the Future Years Defense Program"
• Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property Hearing: "Oversight of the U.S. Copyright Office"
• Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing: "Testimony on Air Force modernization in review of the Defense Authorization Request for FY27 and the Future Years Defense Program"

Wednesday, May 13

• House Financial Services Committee Markup of various measures including:
  • H.R. 2152, the Artificial Intelligence Practices, Logistics, Actions, and Necessities (AI PLAN) Act
  • H.R. 4801, the Unleashing AI Innovation in Financial Services Act
  • H.R. 8671, the Bank Fraud Technology Advancement Act of 2026
• House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government Hearing: "Sharia-Free America: Why Political Islam & Sharia Law are Incompatible with the U.S. Constitution: Part II"
• House Natural Resources Committee Oversight Hearing: "Examining the President's FY27 Budget Request for the Department of the Interior" with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum
• House Foreign Affairs Committee Markup of various measures including:
  • H.R. 7037, To promote U.S. and allied energy and mineral security
  • H.R. 8661, To provide loans for the procurement of defense articles, defense services, and design and construction services
  • H.R. 8649, To authorize the use of foreign military financing for direct commercial contracts
  • H.R. 8665, To encourage foreign partners to participate in the foreign military sales and direct commercial sales processes
• House Education and Workforce Subcommittee on Workforce Protections Hearing: "Building a Safer Future: Private-Sector Strategies for Emerging Safety Issues"
• House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy Hearing: "Wires, Rates, and States: Permitting Transmission for Reliable and Affordable Power"
• House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Operations Hearing: "DoW Financial Management: Examining Progress and New Audit Approaches"

• House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces Hearing: Air Force FY27 Budget Request for Seapower and Projection Forces
• Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Hearing: President’s FY27 Budget Request for the U.S. Forest Service
• Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Hearing: The President’s FY27 Budget Request for the Environmental Protection Agency
• Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Hearing: The President’s FY27 Budget Request for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
• Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Hearing: "America 250: Industrialization and the Rise of Small Manufacturers"

Thursday, May 14

• House Armed Services Committee Hearing: Navy FY27 Budget Request
• House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Hearing: "Fairfax County, Virginia: The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary Policies"
• House Education and Workforce Committee Hearing: "Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Education"
• House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation Hearing: Science, Technology, and Innovation Posture of the Department of Defense
• Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Hearing: The President’s FY27 Budget Request for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• Senate Banking Committee Markup of cryptocurrency legislation

Friday, May 15

• House Armed Services Committee Hearing: Army FY27 Budget Request

Tariff Update

Section 122 Tariffs. On May 6, a three-judge panel of the Court of International Trade declared President Trump’s 10% tariffs on most U.S. imports illegal. However, the court’s decision did not provide nationwide relief and only barred the government from collecting the tariffs on the two companies who were plaintiffs in the case and imports brought in by the state of Washington. The court ordered the government to refund the levies these importers already paid, with interest. The U.S. will continue to collect the tariffs from other importers, and the Justice Department promptly appealed the decision. The President imposed the Section 122 tariffs on Feb. 20, the same day the Supreme Court invalidated the IEEPA tariffs, and they will expire on July 24.

Autos. President Trump said May 7 that the European Union will have until July 4 to implement its trade deal with the U.S. or else he will increase the current 15% tariff on cars and trucks from the European Union to 25%. This latest announcement followed a May 1 social media post by the President saying he was increasing the tariffs but providing no effective date. The tariffs are imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Act.

Political Update

Nebraska. In tomorrow’s Democratic Senate primary, party leaders are supporting Cindy Burbank over her opponent, Bill Forbes. If Burbank secures the nomination, she has promised to drop out of the race in order to boost the candidacy of Independent Dan Osborn in the race for the seat now held by Republican Senator Pete Ricketts. Democrats are also looking to see who will prevail in a heated primary in the 2^nd Congressional District, where incumbent Rep. Don Bacon (R) is retiring.

West Virginia. In West Virginia’s primary tomorrow, neither Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R) nor the state’s two House members face significant challenges.

Louisiana. The top three candidates in the May 16 Republican Senate primary are Senator Bill Cassidy, Rep. Julia Letlow, and State Treasurer John Fleming. If no candidate receives over 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will advance to a June 27 runoff. Primaries for the state’s six House seats have been delayed until July 15 or a time designated by the state legislature following the April 29 Supreme Court decision that the state’s current House maps are unconstitutional. The state legislature is now redrawing the congressional maps.

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