By Julianne LaJeunesse- University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

House Energy and Commerce Committee members met with Department of Transportation Sec. Ray LaHood, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, and transportation experts Wednesday, to discuss who- the federal government or states- would be responsible for ensuring drivers avoid text messaging, using cellular phones, and working GPS systems while on the road.

The committee members agreed that distracted driving is dangerous and should be regulated, and some committee members, such as Virgin Island’s Representative Donna Christensen (D-V.I.), even admitted to texting or using their cell phones while driving. However, when it came to the question of who should regulate the rules of the road, the committee split.

Rep. John Shimkus (R- Ill.) put it bluntly: “Distracted driving is bad,” he said. However, he added, “I have never been for the federal government extorting highway funds to obtain some means to an end that should be decided through the state.”

Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) also expressed questions about potentially changing laws, saying he urged his colleagues to create thoughtful, flexible, and “sound” policy.

“Although we share a justified measure of concern about the relationship between use of certain technological devices and driver safety, we have to guard against enthusiastically overly prescriptive statutes… that in the long term may stifle innovation and ultimately show them to be of marginal benefit to the cause of improving driver safety,” he said.

Other representatives, such as Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), said federally mandating laws that would reduce distracted driving may seem “weary,” but said Congress could consider federally mandating public education on distracted driving.

As of last month, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association, six states including California, New York, and Oregon, had banned nearly all cell phone use while driving, and 18 states had banned text messaging while driving.

By Travis Martinez – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce voted 33-19 on Thursday to pass H.R. 3126, otherwise known as the Consumer Financial Protection Agency Act of 2009. The legislation would oversee mortgages and other financial products and would strengthen the Federal Trade Commission’s role in the financial industry.

Lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted to make two major changes to the bill. The first amendment, offered by Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), would first rename the agency, as written in the mark, as a new government commission. The amendment also provided a restructured panel of five members to the commission, with a limit of three commissioners from any particular political party. This would give the commission the same structure as the Federal Trade Commission, or Federal Communications Commission.

Several businesses, either in full or in part, would be exempt from the legislation. This list includes auto dealers, credit, mortgage and title insurers, banks with less than $10 billion in assets, and credit unions with less than $1.5 billion in assets.

Waxman acknowledged the long list of exemptions as a possible problem, but said that he would wait to address any issues he had.

“I am concerned that too many exemptions and exclusions were put into the bill… I will want to examine them closely as we move toward consideration on the floor,” said Waxman.

Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) offered numerous amendments that were subsequently shot down after discussion with the panel. However, in a show of bipartisanship, Waxman offered to work with Barton on re-wording the offered amendments so that they could be possibly brought to the floor at a later date for full consideration.

Waxman recognized the original bill’s sponsor, House Financial Services Committee Chair Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) for his committee’s work on promoting the expanded authority of the FTC over the financial sector.

“I am pleased that he made many essential changes, particularly in regard to the impact of the FTC, which will preserve the FTC’s authority to provide and aggressively enforce against financial fraud,” said Waxman.

By Joseph Russell- Talk Radio News Service

The House Energy and Commerce Committee finalized a key mark-up on health care reform just hours before the House’s summer recess began. However, despite hours of deliberation on the legislation that commenced Thursday evening, continued well past midnight Friday, and resumed during the day on Friday, the committee made no significant changes.

This upset GOP committee members, whose proposed amendments that were aimed at stripping the President’s much-desired public option from the plan, were rejected.

Other Republican amendments, including provisions that would encourage citizens to live healthy lifestyles and would provide Americans access to the same insurance plans that members of Congress enjoy, were also thrown out.

Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) said there is no reason for Congress not to offer ordinary citizens the same health insurance it has access to. “We’ve got competition, we’ve got affordability, we’ve got choice,” Terry said. “Those are the things that I want and Republicans want for our constituents.”

The complete House health care bill will not be voted on until members return from summer break in September.

The fate of the bill, which proposes establishing a government-run health care system as a means of competing with the nation’s private health care industry, is unknown. However, GOP’ers and Blue Dog Democrats plan on using the next month to guage their constituents’ feelings about the plan.

By Joseph Russell- Talk Radio News Service

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) told members of the Energy and Commerce Committee, which he heads, to clear their schedules until late into the night on Thursday.

“I expect we’ll be back here tomorrow,” Waxman said. “We’re not going to close out anybody’s opportunity to offer amendments.”

The committee agreed to limit all debate for amendments to 10 minutes each for both sides in order to save time. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that the mark-up will be finished before the House’s recess begins on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, a Republican amendment that would have prevented illegal immigrants from receiving Medicare benefits failed by one vote. The amendment would have required Medicare recipients to prove citizenship in order to get benefits.

An amendment that would prevent federal funding of clinical comparative effectiveness research passed overwhelmingly. Such research evaluates medical care based on cost rather than effectiveness. In England and Canada, federal comparative effectiveness research is used to ration care by preventing certain procedures based on factors such as outside patient needs and requirements.

Debate over mark-ups will continue as the committee works late into Thursday night and early Friday morning.

Should we invest in Medicaid and Biomedical research in a stimulus package for our down turning economy? The House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing today to discuss “Treatments for an Ailing Economy: Protecting Health Care Coverage and Investing in Biomedical Research.”

In her testimony, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano (D-Ariz.) stated, “one of the wisest and most effective things Congress can do now to speed a national recovery is to invest in the federal-state programs that Americans rely on during a downturn.” Napolitano continued, “one of the most effective ways to aid in a national economic recovery is temporarily to increase the Federal medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), or the share of the Medicaid program paid for by the federal government.”

A recent survey of state fiscal conditions found that more than 30 states are currently projecting budget shortfalls in fiscal year 2009, totaling $26 billion. Napolitano said the federal government should “invest in existing programs where it partners with the states.”

The committee discussed how Medicaid is continuously an issue in times of economic struggle, and “congress should make a counter-cyclical stimulus a permanent part of the Medicaid statute” as Gov. Napolitano stated in her testimony.

Alan D. Viard, American Enterprise Institute, agreed that the stimulus package can increase aggregate demand by increasing consumer demand, but it cannot permanently increase the level of jobs. Viard said, “counter-cycical increases in Medicaid matching rates would function poorly as a stimulus tool…Financial transfers from the federal government to the states do not directly boost aggregate demand because they do not directly increase consumer spending, business or residential investment, government purchases, or net exports.”

In regard to the inclusion of BioMedical Research, Families USA Executive Director Ronald F. Pollack expressed support for the National Institute of Health “in order to stimulate the economy.” Pollack said, “if the sum of all NIH awards to the states were to increase by 6.6 percent, the national economic benefit would add up to $3.1 billion worth of new business activity, 9,185 additional jobs, and $1.1 billion in new wages.”

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing on “H.R. 3014, Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2007,” in order to discuss how to improve the health of minority individuals in the U.S. Vice Chairman Lois Capps (D-Calif.) said that the U.S. needs this bill “now more than ever,” and that it is embarrassing that the U.S. cannot extend health care to every citizen. Rep. Hilda Solis (D-Calif.) said that it is time for Congress to put the best ideas and practices together and bridge the gap of health disparities. (more…)