Congress Keeps 'Lame Duck' Legislating

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Aside from a vote to allow tax hikes to affect families and small businesses earning more than $250,000, the House of Representatives voted on the following measures this week:

H.R. 5866, the Nuclear Energy Research and Development (NERD) Act. The NERD Act accelerates the research and development of small, pre-made nuclear reactors that can be built in factories and shipped directly to sites without large sums of capital investment or years of planning and construction. Utilities to quickly and simply fill capacity meet US energy demand, which is expected to rise 40% by 2030. Small reactors rely on technology similar to those used in powering US military fleets. Nuclear energy is apart of Murphy's bipartisan energy independence plan. Congressman Murphy is co-author of H.R. 2227, the American Conservation and Clean Energy Independence Act, an all-of-the-above approach to making America energy independent. The House of Representatives adopted the measure by voice vote on Wednesday. On Thursday, Congressman Murphy who supported this measure addressed the House floor and urged the Senate to adopt the measure, as it invests in technologies that can be made here and sold all over the world, "If we don't do this in the USA, other countries can and will make them and ship them here. Let's support US jobs for US energy.

A measure to eliminate $35 million in wasteful practices by Congress was brought to the floor on Wednesday, but the Majority defeated the measure using a procedural method. Congressman Murphy is a supporter of the bill, H.R. 4640, which would cease the mandatory wasteful printing extra copies of legislation for by the Government Printing Office (GPO). For every bill introduced in Congress the GPO prints 200paper copies. In the 111th Congress, over 14,000 bills were introduced, initiating the printing of approximately 2.8 million paper copies, even though all of the bills are available online. The healthcare bill was 2,500 pages alone. Congressman Murphy voted to eliminate this outmoded and wasteful use of taxpayer money.

H.Res.1737, In the Matter of Representative Charles B. Rangel. The House adopted a measure to censure New York Congressman Charles Rangel on Thursday, by a vote of 333-79. Rep. Murphy voted in favor of disciplinary action against Mr. Rangel, who was found guilty by the House bipartisan ethics panel of violating eleven rules.

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