While Democrats prescribed $1 trillion of aid in the Phase 4 package they approved in May, Republicans initially insisted the only aid they would consider is to allow local governments discretion to use an existing $150 billion coronavirus relief fund to cover operating expenses, which initially was prohibited. GOP negotiators reportedly have since upped the offer to $200 billion of new aid.
Rubio, who leads the U.S. Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, weighed in this week after the U.S. Treasury Department and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced they were reopening the PPP.
Last week, almost 20 members of Congress, including members of the Florida delegation, sent a letter to President Joe Biden, requesting that he follow through with efforts to study the toxic exposure of almost 10,000 military personnel previously stationed at Karshi Khanabad (K2) Air Base in Uzbekistan.
Hastings brought out the “Farm-to-Market Road Repair Act" which, according to his office, would “expand eligibility for the Surface Transportation Block Grant program to include rural roads that serve to transport agriculture products from farms or ranches to the marketplace.”
Having left Tallahassee and taking his seat on Capitol Hill last week, new U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., weighed in on his first impressions of Washington, D.C. and, despite Republicans controlling the Senate, the newest member is not that impressed.
“I’m convinced that without Chinese Communist Party deception the virus would not be here in the United States,” said Graham when he brought out the bill. “China refuses to allow the international community to go into the Wuhan lab to investigate. They refuse to allow investigators to study how this outbreak started."
Although the bill still has to face the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, forty members have lined up as cosponsors.
“The law failed to add a requirement for advisers and consultants to disclose their own conflicts of interests with the variety of creditors to whom Puerto Rico owes $123 billion,” Rubio’s office insisted.
“Under current law, it is a federal crime for an individual to harass or intimidate another individual, in person or online, in a way that places them in fear of physical harm or causes them significant emotional distress. The maximum criminal penalty is 5 years in prison, and 10 years in prison if the defendant causes serious physical injury to the victim or uses a dangerous weapon. The Murphy-led bill would increase the maximum penalty by 5 years, to 10 years and 15 years respectively, when the defendant is an adult and the victim is under 18 years of age,” the congresswoman’s office noted.
Rubio paired up with U.S. Sens. John Barrasso, R-Wy., Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., and Jim Risch, R-Idaho, on an amendment which “would ensure the proper constitutional check by requiring that the President submit to Congress any renewed nuclear deal with Iran as a treaty" and “reaffirms the Senate’s role of advice and consent, as well as prevents waiving, suspending, reducing or limiting the application of sanctions before the Senate has concurred.” Johnson took the lead in filing the amendment.