Georgia delegation congressional voting

WASHINGTON — Here’s a look at how Georgia’s members of Congress voted over the previous week.

Along with roll call votes last week, the House also passed the Improving Rural Call Quality and Reliability Act (H.R. 2566), to ensure the integrity of voice communications and prevent unjust or unreasonable discrimination against rural areas; passed the Protecting Patient Access to Emergency Medications Act (H.R. 4365), to amend the Controlled Substances Act; passed the Women, Peace, and Security Act (H.R. 5332), to promote the meaningful participation of women in conflict mediation and negotiations; passed the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act (H.R. 5732), to halt the wholesale slaughter of the Syrian people, encourage a negotiated political settlement, and hold Syrian human rights abusers accountable.

The Senate also passed the Northern Border Security Review Act (S. 1808), to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a Northern Border threat analysis; passed the First Responder Anthrax Preparedness Act (S. 1915), to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to make anthrax vaccines available to emergency response providers; passed the No Veterans Crisis Line Call Should Go Unanswered Act (H.R. 5392), to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to improve the Veterans Crisis Line; and passed the National Forest System Trails Stewardship Act (H.R. 845), to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to publish a strategy to significantly increase the role of volunteers and partners in National Forest System trail maintenance.

HOUSE

BANNING SPOOFING CALLS: The House has passed the Anti-Spoofing Act (H.R. 2669) sponsored by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y. The bill would extend to calls that come from outside the U.S. a ban on phone calls and text messages that display inaccurate caller identification information on recipients’ phones, in order to mislead the recipient into providing financial and other information about themselves. The vote, on Nov. 14, was 382 yeas to 5 nays.

YEAS: Full delegation except for Lynn Westmoreland, R-3rd, who did not vote

EXTENDING IRAN SANCTIONS: The House has passed the Iran Sanctions Extension Act (H.R. 6297), sponsored by Rep. Edward R. Royce, R-Calif., to reauthorize the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996. The vote, on Nov. 15, was 419 yeas to 1 nay.

YEAS: Full delegation except for Westmoreland and John Lewis, D-5th, who did not vote

DEMOCRACY IN THE CONGO: The House has passed a resolution (H. Res. 780), sponsored by Rep. Christopher H. Smith, R-N.J., urging the Democratic Republic of the Congo to follow its constitution during a democratic transition of power in a presidential election later this year. The vote, on Nov. 15, was 416 yeas to 3 nays.

YEAS: Full delegation except for Westmoreland and Lewis, who did not vote

REGULATIONS PROPOSED BY OUTGOING PRESIDENTS: The House has passed the Midnight Rules Relief Act (H.R. 5982) sponsored by Rep. Darrell E. Issa, R-Calif. The bill would authorize congressional reviews of groups of regulations that are proposed by federal agencies within the last 60 days of a session of Congress during the final year of a president’s term. Issa said that by enabling Congress to more speedily consider many rules proposed by an outgoing president, the bill would improve the balance of power and Congress’s capacity to oversee and pass judgment, rather than be forced to accept such rules. A bill opponent, Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., said it was “based on the fundamentally flawed premise that rules finalized during the final year of a president’s term are somehow rushed or improperly vetted.” The vote, on Nov. 17, was 240 yeas to 179 nays.

YEAS: Rick Allen, R-12; Buddy Carter, R-1; Doug Collins, R-9; Tom Graves, R-14; Jody Hice, R-10; Barry Loudermilk, R-11; Tom Price, R-6; Austin Scott, R-8; Rob Woodall, R-7

NAYS: Sanford Bishop, D-2; Hank Johnson, D-4; Lewis, D-5; David Scott, D-13

NOT VOTING: Westmoreland

IRAN AIRCRAFT SALES: The House has passed a bill (H.R. 5711) sponsored by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., that would bar the Treasury Secretary from authorizing transactions by U.S. banks or the government’s Export-Import Bank that facilitate the sale of passenger planes to Iran. The vote, on Nov. 17, was 243 yeas to 174 nays.

YEAS: Allen, Carter, Collins, Graves, Hice, Loudermilk, Price, A. Scott, Woodall

NAYS: Bishop, Johnson, Lewis, D. Scott

NOT VOTING: Westmoreland

SENATE

ORAL HISTORIES FROM FAMILIES OF WAR CASUALTIES: The Senate has passed the Gold Star Families Voices Act (H.R. 4511) sponsored by Rep. Christopher H. Smith, R-N.J. The bill would authorize the Library of Congress to collect oral histories on audio and video from family members of soldiers who died in U.S. wars, as part of the Library’s Veterans History Project. The vote, on Nov. 15, was unanimous with 97 yeas.

YEAS: Johnny Isakson, R

NAYS: None

NOT VOTING: David Perdue, R

SHARING REVENUE FROM ENERGY PRODUCTION: The Senate has rejected a cloture motion to end debate on the American Energy and Conservation Act (S. 3110). The bill would change administration of oil and natural gas development in the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf and renewable energy development on federal lands by sharing revenue from onshore and offshore energy production projects on those lands and waterways with states that host the projects. The vote to end debate, on Nov. 17, was 51 yeas to 47 nays, with a three-fifths majority required to end debate.

YEAS: Perdue, Isakson