Key Votes on Amendments to H.R. 3055

On behalf of FreedomWorks activists nationwide, I urge you to contact your representative and ask him or her to vote in the manner prescribed for each amendment below to the Commerce, Justice, Science, Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, H.R. 3055. As is always the case, FreedomWorks reserves the right to key vote any amendment brought to the floor for a vote.

YES – Amendment #13 (Division A): Sponsored by Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), this amendment would prohibit the Department of Justice from seeking and accepting adoptive seizures. Civil asset forfeiture is a pernicious form of government overreach, through which property or money may be permanently seized, without the property owner being arrested or charged, let alone convicted, of a crime. Although roughly half of the states have increased evidentiary needed to subject seized property to forfeiture, few have closed the loophole in federal law that prohibits the circumvention of those state laws. This amendment would prohibit the use of funds to implement the use of funds for adoptive seizures, essentially nullifying a directive made by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in July 2017.

YES – Amendment #36 (Division A): Sponsored by Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), this amendment reduces spending for each amount in Division A by 14 percent. This reduction would be consistent with spending levels under the Budget Control Act of 2011.

NO – Amendment #89 (Division A): Sponsored by Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.), this amendment would prevent the Department of Justice from using funds to litigate any case in which the constitutionality or enforceability of any provision of Obamacare is in question. Obviously, this amendment is aimed at the Department of Justice’s participation in Texas v. United States. This case is pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Oral arguments will be heard in July.

YES – Amendment #99 (Division B): Sponsored by Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), this amendment reduces spending for each amount in Division B by 14 percent. This reduction would be consistent with spending levels under the Budget Control Act of 2011.

YES – Amendment #135 (Division C): Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.), this amendment would prohibit the use of funds for the Obama-era EPA’s Clean Power Plan. According to the Heritage Foundation, the Clean Power Plan would have created an annual shortfall of 300,000 jobs, a loss of $2.5 trillion in GDP, and $7,000 in lost income per person.

YES – Amendment #161 (Division C): Sponsored by Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.), this amendment would reduce the amounts appropriated in Division C by 23.6 percent, unless a specific amount is required by law. This reduction would match the President’s budget request for FY 2020. Although FreedomWorks is scoring the Hice amendment instead of the Banks amendment (14 percent spending reduction) for Division C, we still encourage a yes vote on the Banks amendment (#136) as well.

NO – Amendment #206 (Division D): Sponsored by Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), this amendment would prohibit the use of funds from contravening an executive order to “buy American.” This amendment comes at a time when protectionism has at least somewhat diminished the benefits of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Indeed, a recent study by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation found that the tariffs imposed since 2017 represent the third largest tax hike since World War II. The study also found that if all threatened tariffs are imposed “the combined result will be far and away the largest tax increase in the post-war era in real dollar terms.” This amendment may not be about tariffs, but it’s the same protectionist sentiment. Congress should reject it, as well as Amendment #249.

NO – Amendment #219 (Division D): Sponsored by Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.), this amendment would prohibit funds from being used for a new round of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC).

NO – Amendment #249 (Division E): Sponsored by Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.), this amendment would the prohibit the use of funds from contravening an executive order to “buy American.”

YES – Amendment #251 (Division E): Sponsored by Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), this amendment reduces spending for each amount in Division C by 14 percent. This reduction would be consistent with spending levels under the Budget Control Act of 2011.

FreedomWorks may count the votes on these amendments to H.R. 3055, on our 2019 Congressional Scorecard and reserves the right to score other amendments. Votes on amendments may also be weighted. The scorecard is used to determine eligibility for the FreedomFighter Award, which recognizes Members of the House and Senate who consistently vote to support economic freedom and individual liberty.

Sincerely,

Adam Brandon, President, FreedomWorks