Here is how our House members and New York’s two senators voted on select issues during the legislative weeks ending May 10, as reported by Targeted News Service. Click here for previous votes.
Michael Lawler (R), District 17 (including Philipstown)
Lawler, 37, was elected to Congress in 2022. From 2021 to 2022, he was a Republican member of the state Assembly from the 97th district in Rockland County. A graduate of Suffern High School, he holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from Manhattan College. He is a former director of the state Republican Party and former deputy supervisor of Orangetown.
Pat Ryan (D), District 18 (including Beacon)
Ryan, 41, was elected to Congress in 2022. Formerly the county executive of Ulster, he grew up in Kingston and holds a bachelor’s degree in international politics from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a master’s degree in security studies from Georgetown. Ryan served in the U.S. Army as a combat intelligence officer from 2004 to 2009, including two tours in Iraq. He is also a former technology executive.
Grants to Special Government Districts
The House on May 6, by a 352-27 vote, passed the Special District Grant Accessibility Act (H.R. 7525), sponsored by Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas), to require the Office of Management and Budget to create regulatory guidance on how federal government agencies classify special districts formed by local governments, to determine whether the districts can receive money from the federal government. Fallon said the guidance would help districts, which are often formed to provide emergency services or for water management, “consistently access federal financial assistance.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted yes
Madeleine Albright Post Office
The House on May 7, by a 371-28 vote, passed a bill (H.R. 3354), sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.), to name a post office building in Purcellville, Virginia, after Madeleine Albright, who was Secretary of State from 1997 to 2001.
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted yes
Grid Transformers Efficiency Rule
The House on May 7 adopted, by a 208-199 vote, an amendment sponsored by Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), to the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act (H.R. 6192). The amendment would void a recently issued Energy Department rule setting energy conservation standards for distribution transformers on the electrical grid. Kelly said the rule threatened to replace grain-oriented electrical steel in transformers with amorphous steel, with a resulting decrease in efficiency, and the loss of jobs at an electrical steel mill in Pennsylvania and dependence on foreign sources of amorphous steel. An amendment opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said the rule “provides stability and certainty while moving us toward vital efficiency goals.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Efficiency Rules for Home Appliances
The House on May 7, by a 212-195 vote, passed the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act (H.R. 6192), sponsored by Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-Ariz.), to change Energy Department procedures for making energy efficiency standards for home appliances such as dishwashers and refrigerators. Lesko said the bill “will preserve the affordability, availability, and quality of the household appliances Americans rely on every day.” An opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), said the standards “save Americans money on their energy bills, boost innovation by modernizing appliances for the future, and reduce greenhouse gas pollution.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Joint Employer Rule
The House on May 7, by a 214-191 vote, failed to override President Biden’s veto of a resolution (H.J. Res. 98), sponsored by Rep. John James (R-Mich.), to disapprove of and void a National Labor Relations Board rule for determining whether two or more employers qualify as joint employers when they have the same employee. James said overturning the rule would “allow Americans to self-determine without threat to their right to collectively bargain.” A resolution opponent, Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), said the joint employer rule was needed to protect American workers. A two-thirds majority vote was required to override.
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Extending Aviation Programs
The House on May 8, by a 385-24 vote, passed the Airport and Airway Extension Act, Part II (H.R. 8289), sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) The bill would extend authorization for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) programs through May 17. Graves said failing to make an extension would cost more than $50 million daily, and he said the bill was also needed “so we can keep our aviation system operating safely and focus on passing a long-term FAA bill next week.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted yes
Removing House Speaker
The House on May 8, by a 359-43 vote, tabled a resolution (H. Res. 1209), sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene (R-Ga.), that would have declared the office of House Speaker vacant.
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
SEC Accounting Rule
The House on May 8, by a 228-182 vote, passed a resolution (H.J. Res. 109), sponsored by Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.), to disapprove of and void a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule that issued accounting guidance requiring banks to place digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies, that they hold in custody on their own balance sheets. Flood said the resolution would provide “a necessary check to executive branch power” by stopping the SEC from bypassing statutory rulemaking procedures with impunity. A resolution opponent, Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), said the digital assets present “unique technological, regulatory, and legal risks that could significantly impact a company’s financial condition and its operations.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Mining on Federal Lands
The House on May 8, by a 216-195 vote, passed the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act (H.R. 2925), sponsored by Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.), to change regulation of mining on federal lands to allow for exploratory mining in areas not known to have mineral deposits. A supporter, Rep. Pete Stauber (R-Minn.), said that by overturning a 2022 appeals court ruling blocking a copper mine in Arizona on the grounds that a substantial copper deposit was not yet known to be at the mine site, the bill would properly allow mining to resume on federal lands. An opponent, Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), said the bill would enable “a toxic free-for-all on our public lands.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Elections and the Census
The House on May 8, by a 206-202 vote, passed the Equal Representation Act (H.R. 7109), sponsored by Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.), to require the Census to include a question on U.S. citizenship, and exclude non-citizens from the count used to determine the number of representatives in Congress for each state. Edwards said: “Since the illegal alien population is not evenly distributed through the nation, American citizens in some states are losing representation in Congress to illegal aliens in other states.” An opponent, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), called the bill “unconstitutional and unwise. It dishonors our own history and the values of the nation.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted no
Investigating Construction Failures
The House on May 8, by a 358-41 vote, passed the National Construction Safety Team Enhancement Act (H.R. 4143), sponsored by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.). The bill would expand the authority of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s National Construction Safety Teams to include investigations of the failures of structures that are not buildings. Lofgren said the expanded authority was necessary because “there’s no agency currently authorized to conduct thorough technical investigations of failure of general infrastructure, like levees, dikes, bridges, or dams.”
Michael Lawler (R-17, including Philipstown) voted yes
Pat Ryan (D-18, including Beacon) voted yes
Along with this week’s roll call votes, the House also passed these measures:
■ The Securing Chain of Command Continuity Act (H.R. 6972), to require an executive branch agency whose head is a member of the National Security Council to notify, within 24 hours of such head becoming medically incapacitated, the Executive Office of the President, the U.S. Comptroller General and congressional leadership;
■ The Mail Traffic Deaths Reporting Act (H.R. 7527), to direct the Postal Service to issue regulations requiring its employees and contractors to report to the Postal Service traffic crashes involving vehicles carrying mail that result in injury or death;
■ The Eliminate Useless Reports Act (S. 2073), to require agencies to include a list of outdated or duplicative reporting requirements in annual budget justifications; and
■ The Astronaut Safe Temporary Ride Options Act (H.R. 272), to authorize transportation for government astronauts returning from space between their residence and various locations.
SENATE
Ambassador to Timor
The Senate on May 7, by a 52-40 vote, confirmed the nomination of Donna Welton to be U.S. ambassador to Timor-Leste. Welton has been a State Department diplomat in Afghanistan, Finland, Indonesia, and Japan.
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) voted yes
Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) voted yes
Aviation Policy
The Senate on May 9, by a 88-4 vote, passed the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act (H.R. 3935), sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) The bill would reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) through fiscal 2028, and set out an array of policy directives for the FAA and the Transportation Department, including updated rules for operating drones and a drug testing program for NTSB workers. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), said: “Passing this FAA bill preserves critical funding for airport security, training for more air traffic controllers and safety inspectors at manufacturing plants.” An opponent, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), objected to the bill’s failure to resolve problems with aircraft capacity at Reagan National Airport in Virginia.
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) voted yes
Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) voted yes
