Posts by Matt Zuiderhof

This Week in Congress Both chambers are scheduled to recess at the end of the week and reconvene in the first full week of January.  In the interim, Happy Holidays! This week, the House voted on several significant bills, including H.R. 498, which would prohibit using Medicaid funding for gender-affirming care for minors. Additionally, the…

The 119th Congress – The House Has Been Unproductive? The House is nearing the end of what appears to be a historically unproductive year. With just 336 roll call votes taken, this year’s total is the lowest in three decades, except for the 2020 session, which was impacted by the onset of Covid-19. By the…

ASA Supports the White House Conference on Small Business Act of 2025 ASA has a long history of supporting the White House Conference on Small Business Act of 2025, which is set to be reintroduced by Reps. Finstad (R-MN) and Davis (D-NC). This legislation aims to reauthorize and amend the White House Conference on Small…

Healthcare Update Monday marked the final day for individuals to enroll in ACA health exchanges for 2026. Congress has yet to reach a consensus on the future path. Enhanced premium tax credits are set to expire at the end of this month, leading to significant premium increases next year. As previously discussed, the key obstacles…

National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Update The House subsequently passed the NDAA by a vote of 312 to 112, with 115 Democrats joining 197 Republicans in voting “aye.” The Senate considered the bill this week. One potential complication involves bipartisan objections led by Sens. Cruz (R-TX) and Cantwell (D-WA) to a provision that reverses safety…

FY26 Appropriations Update Senate leaders continue to face challenges in lifting the Republican holds on a five-bill minibus, which includes appropriations for Commerce-Justice-State, Defense, Interior, Labor-Health and Human Services (Labor-HHS), and Transportation-Housing and Urban Development. As highlighted in a previous Hill Update, some Senators are demanding the removal of the Labor-HHS bill and the elimination…

This Week in Congress Congress is undertaking an extensive legislative agenda amid elevated tensions in the weeks preceding year-end. A significant driver of this tension is the impending expiration of enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, with substantial disagreement between Republicans in both chambers regarding their extension. Senate Democrats intend to propose a three-year…

FY 26 Appropriations Risk With government funding expiring January 30, Congress must act soon to pass the remaining nine appropriations bills. The Senate aims to advance a package of five major spending bills but has stalled due to concerns from fiscal conservatives. The House wants to approve less-controversial bills but likely will not move forward…

Healthcare Impasse After last month’s shutdown, Senate Democrats debated health care subsidies. Instead of a bipartisan deal, the Senate will consider partisan proposals: Democrats want a three-year extension of ACA subsidies, while Republicans propose direct payments to health savings accounts. Neither plan is expected to pass the 60-vote threshold, and ongoing talks are unlikely to…

Final Year End Item: Defense Bill Congress faces one remaining major task before year’s end: passing the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Both the House and Senate have approved their respective versions of the bill, and negotiations are underway to reconcile differences. The Trump administration advocated for a disputed provision that would override state…