Today in Congress: June 18, 2009

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Washington Post

The Senate is in session today. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall will testify.

Committees

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (2:30 p.m.): Holds a hearing on “Examining State Business Incorporation Practices: A Discussion of S.569, the Incorporation Transparency and Law Enforcement Assistance Act.” Janice Ayala, deputy assistant director of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement in the Homeland Security Department’s Office of Investigations; Jennifer Calvery, senior counsel to the deputy attorney general at the Justice Department; North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall; Adam Kaufmann, assistant district attorney general for New York County, N.Y.; Harry Haynsworth, chairman of the Drafting Committee on “Uniform Law Enforcement Access to Entity Information Act” of the Uniform Law Commission, will testify. 342 Dirksen.

Senate Foreign Relations (2 p.m.): Holds a closed briefing on “Treaty Negotiations with Russia.” Assistant Secretary of State for Verification and Compliance Rose Gottenmoeller, briefs the committee. SVC-217, U.S. Capitol.

Senate Appropriations (9:30 a.m.): Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee holds a hearing on the budget estimates for FY2010 for the Transportation Department. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood testifies. 138 Dirksen.

Senate Appropriations (3 p.m.): Meets to markup the FY2010 Homeland Security and Legislative Branch Appropriations bills; and to adopt FY2010 302(b) allocations. 106 Dirksen.

THE HOUSE

The House is in sesstion and will meet at 10 a.m. for legislative business. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will testify.

Committees

House Natural Resources (10 a.m.): Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife Subcommittee holds a hearing on H.R.21, the “Ocean Conservation, Education, and National Strategy for the 21st Century Act,” focusing on strengthening the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and establishing a national policy for our oceans. Witnesses TBA. 1324 Longworth.

House Judiciary (10 a.m.): Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal.” Witnesses TBA. 2141 Rayburn.

House Foreign Affairs (1:30 p.m.): Europe Subcommittee holds a hearing on “The Prague Conference on Holocaust Era Assets: And Overview.” Christian Kennedy, special envoy for Holocaust issues for the State Department; and Stuart Eizenstat, head of the U.S. Delegation to the Prague Holocaust Era Assets Conferences, State Department, will testify. 2200 Rayburn.

House Financial Services (1 p.m.): Holds a hearing on “The Administration’s Plan for the Restructuring of the American Financial Regulatory System.” Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will testify. 2128 Rayburn.

House Energy and Commerce (9:30 a.m.): Health Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Medical Devices: Are Current Regulations Doing Enough for Patients?” Witnesses TBA. 2322 Rayburn.

House Budget (10:30 a.m.): Holds a hearing on “Statutory PAYGO (pay-as-you-go).” Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Peter Orszag; Robert Greenstein, executive director of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities; former OMB Director Alice Rivlin, senior fellow at The Brookings Institution; and former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin, will testify. 210 Cannon.

House Foreign Affairs (11 a.m.): Western Hemisphere Subcommittee holds a hearing on “U.S. Efforts to Combat Arms Trafficking to Mexico: Report from the Government Accountability Office.” Jess Ford, director of the GAO’s International Affairs and Trade Team, will testify. 2172 Rayburn.

House Oversight and Government Reform (2 p.m.): Domestic Policy Subcommittee holds a hearing on “After Injury, the Battle Begins: Evaluating Workers’ Compensation for Civilian Contractors in War Zones,” focusing on the handling of workers’ compensation insurance for federal contractors working overseas known as Defense Base Act insurance. Deputy Labor Secretary Seth Harris; Timothy Newman, Kevin Smith and John Woodson, former civilian contractors in Iraq; Kristian Moor, president of AIU Holdings, Inc., a division of AIG; George Fay, executive vice president for Worldwide P&C Claims, CNA Financial; and Gary Pitts of Pitts and Mills Attorneys at-Law, will testify. 2154 Rayburn.