View From the Capitol - Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler's Newsletter for the Week of November 3-7, 2014

Good Day,

First and foremost, I want to thank the citizens of Missouri’s Fourth Congressional District for giving me the privilege of representing them for almost four years, and say how honored I am to be given the opportunity to represent them in the new session of Congress that begins in January. I appreciate the trust they have given me and look forward to advancing their ideas. But there is much to be done before January. Members of the House and Senate will soon return to Washington for what is known as a “lame duck” session – a period during which current Members have the opportunity to complete work on a number of pieces of legislation that must be passed by the end of the year.

The prime responsibility of Congress during the “lame duck” session will be approval of an important spending measure that is needed to ensure our government has the resources to address key domestic and national security goals, including America’s strategy to destroy the terrorist threat posed by ISIL and to fund normal government operations without interruption. The current continuing resolution of the budget expires December 11th. We need to fund the government beyond that date while addressing other issues. There is more that Congress can do in the coming weeks, but it is yet to be seen if it will. Congress might consider extending tax provisions for research and development and other important pro-growth job creation efforts. It also needs to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to fund our troops. The NDAA has been approved by Congress 52 years in a row. I don’t want to see that tradition discontinue and will continue to monitor discussions between the House and the Senate on this important measure.

The fact is that while our economy has improved modestly, too many Americans are still looking for work as our national debt continues to rise. The Republican-controlled House has passed dozens of pro-growth jobs bills to build a stronger economy and a better future for hardworking families. But these bills are stalled in the Senate. Among these good pieces of legislation is the Preserving Work Requirements for Welfare Programs Act, which prevents the undermining of reforms critical to helping millions out of poverty and into the workforce; the Small Business Capital Access and Job Preservation Act, which facilitates the growth of Main Street businesses by reining in red tape that hurts small business investment; the Unfunded Mandates Information & Transparency Act, that would boost transparency of the costs of unfunded regulations that are strangling small businesses; and the Save American Workers Act, which repeals the 30-hour trigger for the  employer mandate in the President’s health care plan and restores the 40-hour threshold for a full-time work week. While there is little chance of the present Senate taking up and passing these pro-growth bills before the end of the year, I am hopeful that, with a Republican-led Senate next year, we will be able to advance many of these vital bills that will help Americans get back to work and grow our economy.

Finally, a St. Louis Circuit Judge ruled this week that Missouri’s Constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman is unconstitutional. I was disappointed that one judge overturned the will of the Missouri people. Missouri citizens overwhelmingly approved this amendment with 71 percent of our citizens supporting it in 2004. This decision is being appealed. Now it is up to the Missouri Supreme Court to uphold the will of the people. I am hopeful the Court will respect the people’s Constitutional right to determine their public policy. Courts should uphold the law, not undermine it.

Have a great week.

Vicky