New year, new Congress - new push for prioritizing Small Business on Capitol Hill and across Washington.
The 119th Congress is now officially underway. With the re-election of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA04) on Friday, legislative business officially began.
First on the agenda will be the certification of President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance’s victory in the November 2024 election. That process is expected to take place today in a Joint Session of Congress beginning at 1:00 p.m.
Despite the heavy snowfall in Washington, as of writing, Congress intends to proceed with certification today. Lawmakers face an obstacle in that they are legally required to begin the special Joint Session of Congress today, and cannot proceed to other business until the election is certified; however with the snow overnight as well as plans for former President Jimmy Carter to lie in state in the Capitol rotunda on Wednesday, the window is tight.
Though they face a busy week already, we do expect Congress to hold its first votes on legislation sometime this week, likely on Thursday.
The first two bills in the House are likely to be H.R.23 (The Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act – imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court and its supporters in the case of investigation or prosecution of any U.S. persons or our allies outside the ICC’s jurisdiction) and H.R.29 (The Laken Riley Act – requiring detention of certain aliens who commit theft).
However, for the next couple of weeks, Congress will be largely organizing itself and preparing for both the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies on January 20th and the first 100 days of the second Trump Administration. The major question right now in Washington is how will Congress proceed on key Trump priorities given the tight margins in both chambers.
Right now, the major issue is the split between House and Senate Republican leadership over what items to address first. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is intent on pursuing immigration reform as the first issue of the 119th Congress, however House Speaker Mike Johnson has countered that extensions of expiring tax provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act must go first.
Regardless of the path Congress chooses, NSBA will continue to monitor developments in Washington and keep fighting to ensure that small businesses are front-and-center in the 119th Congress.
