More Stuff in the News: Fetal Body Parts, Michelle Vs. The U.S. Navy, SNAP Revue, Restoring Trust, Water, Blacklisting

House Energy and Commerce Committee launched an investigation following the release of a video revealing the Planned Parenthood Senior Director of Medical Services discussing the sale of fetal body parts on Wednesday, July 15, 2015.

Michelle Obama has succeeded in banning fried foods from the Navy's menu, and U.S. Navy members are not happy about this.

Rep. Jackie Walorski (IN-2), Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Nutrition, held a hearing to discuss the development and utilization of evidence-based solutions to improve nutrition programs. This hearing is a continuation of the committee’s ongoing review, known as the Past, Present, and Future of SNAP. The subcommittee heard from experts who shared how results from quality research can be implemented in meaningful ways to improve recipients’ lives and better target limited taxpayer dollars

The House Budget Committee announced the launch of Restoring the Trust for All Generations – a new initiative aimed at raising awareness about the fiscal and policy challenges inherent in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security as well as other mandatory spending programs like income support and educational assistance. The effort will enlist Americans in a call to action in order to build a consensus in support of reform. To begin the conversation, the Committee has released a policy paper entitled Restoring the Trust for All Generations: Principles for Saving and Strengthening America’s Health, Retirement, and Economic Security Programs.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2898, the Western Water and American Food Security Act of 2015 with bipartisan support by a vote of 245-176. Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) issued the following statement upon final passage. “In the midst of the drought crisis in California and the West, H.R. 2898 will liberate Americans from the prison of outdated water laws and radical environmental regulations that have exacerbated the drought and choked the economy. This imperative legislation will restore water to communities across California and the West and stabilize food prices for Americans across the country. Most importantly, it restores people as our unmistakable, rightful first priority in the nation’s water policies,” Chairman Bishop stated. “I commend Rep. David Valadao for his leadership on H.R. 2898, and thank my California colleagues and members of the Committee, for their work on a strong bill that will alleviate manmade drought effects and return prosperity to the West.” The Western Water and American Food Security Act of 2015 passed the Committee on Natural Resources on June 9, 2015.

In 2014, President Obama issued an executive order to require contractors and subcontractors to disclose potential violations of 14 federal labor laws and equivalent state laws from the preceding three years. On May 28, 2015, the Department of Labor and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council issued proposed guidance and a draft regulation intended to implement the executive order. Republican leaders of three congressional committees today wrote to the Department of Labor and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to call for the withdrawal of the administration’s proposed blacklisting guidance and regulation. If the proposed guidance and rule are not withdrawn, the chairmen ask that the administration extend the public comment period by 90 days to “ensure that interested parties have adequate time to review, assess, and provide meaningful input.” The current period, they argue, does not provide stakeholders enough time to “effectively evaluate the full ramifications of the proposals.”