On July 26, 2010, the House passed H.R. 1320, amended, to amend the Federal Advisory Committee Act to increase the transparency and accountability of Federal advisory committees.
On July 27, 2010, the House passed H.R. 5730, to rescind earmarks for certain surface transportation projects.
On July 27, 2010, the House agreed to the Senate amendment of H.R. 4899, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2010. (A previous version of H.R. 4899 contained provisions for funding enforcement on the Southwest border, restricting funding for contracts without Iran Sanctions certifications, etc.)
The Congressional Research Service has issued a report entitled “Trade Remedies and the WTO Rules Negotiations,” which examines trade remedy issues in the World Trade Organization’s Doha Development Agenda.
U.S. Senators Snowe and Collins along with Congressman Michaud announced on July 16, 2010 that the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service approved a shipment of 500 cattle from Eastport, Maine. A Texas-based company’s request to utilize Eastport, Maine as a special port of embarkation for 500 dairy heifers to Turkey had been in limbo due to bureaucratic challenges relating to port and livestock inspections.
On July 22, 2010, Senator Rockefeller (D), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Senator Hutchison (R), Ranking Member of the Commerce Committee, introduced the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2010 (S. 3639), a bill to strengthen security at U.S. ports by focusing resources on critical areas, including especially hazardous cargo, small vessel security, and global supply chain security.
On July 21, 2010, the House Committee on Financial Services held a hearing on HR 2267: the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act, which was introduced by Chairman Frank. According to Representative Ron Paul, the bill would repeal the U.S. ban on Internet gambling and establish a process to ensure that gambling sites can comply with existing laws, and thus offer their services to adults who wish to gamble online. (Note that the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 was codified by Treasury and the Federal Reserve in a 2007 joint final rule that prohibits the funding of unlawful internet gambling. In addition, U.S. online gambling restrictions has been the subject of a WTO dispute.)
On July 21, 2010, the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere heard testimony from the Government Accountability Office on its new report on the Mérida Initiative. Announced in 2009, the Mérida Initiative provides about $1.6 billion in law enforcement support to Mexico and Central American countries. The Department of State manages the Initiative while other U.S. agencies play key roles in implementation. The GAO found that while State has developed some of the key elements of an implementation strategy for the initiative, including a mission, strategic goals, and a resource plan, its strategic documents do not include outcome performance measures that indicate progress toward achieving strategic goals. In addition, State has not developed a comprehensive set of timelines for all expected deliveries, though it plans to provide additional equipment and training in both Mexico and Central America. Copy of report that underlies testimony available here.
House Majority Leader Hoyer (D) has announced that the House Ways and Means Committee is planning to hold hearings that address China’s currency policy. Hoyer has previously stated that the “Make it in America” agenda includes Representative Ryan’s currency legislation (H.R. 2378, the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act), which has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee.
On July 21, 2010, the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing on the Administration’s Joint Strategic Plan on intellectual property and protecting U.S. IP overseas.