12 Sep
2016
Congress mulls short-term bill, but with hurdles; Marketplace Lending Summit; Childhood Cancer Awareness – Sphere’s TenCount for Sept. 12, 2016
- Congress is in session, but for how long? This week, the focus on both sides of the Capitol will be on not letting the government shut down when current spending measures expire at midnight Sept. 30. The Senate this week is expected to consider a spending bill that would keep the government open until Dec. 9, then send it to the House for consideration, where it is expected to face some opposition.
- If such a bill passes, it would mean that Congress would have to address spending beyond Dec. 9 during a lame-duck session after the elections. Adding tension to the debate: The Senate has threatened to adjourn at the end of this week, which would leave the House with the choice of either passing the Senate’s stopgap spending measure or letting the government shut down at the end of the month.
- Senate leaders Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid and House leaders Paul Ryan and Nancy Pelosi are expected to meet with President Obama on Monday afternoon to discuss government funding as well as a stalled bill to pay for research on the Zika virus. What issue continues to stymie the Zika bill’s prospects? Planned Parenthood, naturally; Republicans have sought to block any Zika funds from going to the organization, which would include an affiliate in Puerto Rico, where the virus is rampant.
- Also throwing sand in the gears of the spending measures are objections – led by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz – to the government giving up authority over ICANN, the nonprofit agency that manages the Internet’s domain name system. That is scheduled to occur on Oct. 1. Opponents say turning over management of the global agency would allow countries like Russia and China to thwart efforts to keep the Internet open to their citizens.
- Business groups, meanwhile, hope that the temporary spending measure will include legislation to restore the Export-Import Bank to its full authority by modifying the quorum rules that govern board action. Currently the bank cannot fund transactions of more than $10 million because only two of the board’s five seats are filled. That prevents the bank from acting on large transactions, like those funding purchases of heavy machinery or aircraft.
- Thomas J. Curry, Comptroller of the Currency, Representative Patrick McHenry, vice chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and other influential leaders will engage in a thought-provoking conversation about the most important issues and policies facing the marketplace lending industry at the MPL Summit, Tuesday at the Marriott Marquis in Washington. The summit seeks to create opportunity for industry participants to propose standards and provide regulators and policymakers with consensus viewpoints on the regulation of marketplace lending.
- All five commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission will testify at an oversight hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday. Expected to be among the discussion topics are the commission’s proposal for new regulations governing possible competition in the market for cable television set-top boxes. Separately, the FCC on Tuesday will resume bidding in its spectrum incentive auction, which will sell airwaves previously reserved for broadcast television for use by wireless phone and broadband providers.
- Financial issues, as always, are heavy on the agenda this week. The Economic Club of Washington meets on Monday to hear from Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase. The Financial Services Roundtable conducts a forum Tuesday on retirement challenges, featuring the co-chairs of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Commission on Retirement Security and Personal Savings. And the Peterson Institute for International Economics on Wednesday will discuss a new report on how Central banks can ease monetary policy when interest rates are already at zero.
- The Georgetown Institute of Politics and Policy will host a live interview series, titled “The Exit Interviews,” featuring Obama administration cabinet officials and senior aides. The first session features Susan Rice, national security adviser, who will speak on Wednesday about foreign policy issues. Attendance at the speaker series is limited to Georgetown students and personnel, but the event will be webcast here. Future speakers include Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Oct. 13, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and others.
- September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month – Cancer is the #1 disease killer of children and this is a cause very close to Sphere. For over six years, we have been privileged to work with Nancy Goodman and the Kids V Cancer organization, and witness the incredible impact they have made on a shockingly underserved patient group. Kids V Cancer was the driving force behind the Creating Hope Act and the RACE for Children Act, which are literally transforming the way treatments for pediatric rare diseases are developed. This past weekend also marked our second year as a corporate sponsor for the annual St. Jude Heart of Fashion event in Washington D.C. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital provides incredible care, free of charge, to families forced to confront their worst nightmare. In the midst of this chaotic political season, we think it’s important to remember the challenges faced by so many children and families, and acknowledge the incredible dedication and work of these organizations.