Weekly Wrap 12/20/2019

Throughout the year, the NDC has been busy working to push forward policy priorities and legislation that address the biggest questions facing our nation. New Dems continued to deliver for the American people as we wrapped up the final legislative session of 2019. A full recap of 2019 highlights will be coming to your inboxes at the start of the new year.
 
This week, the House passed H.R. 5430, the implementing bill for the New Dem-endorsed updated U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).  NDC has long supported bringing our trade agreements into the 21^st century, and since its founding, has been integral to every trade initiative passed through Congress; USMCA is no different. NDC Members were nearly unanimous in their support of the updated USMCA that incorporated improvements negotiated by House Democrats, including priorities laid out by New Dems earlier this year. We hope that this agreement can serve as a template for bipartisan consensus in future agreements and urge Senator McConnell to bring it up for a vote on the Senate floor as soon as possible.
 
NDC Members also sent a letter to the House Committee on Education and Labor Chair Bobby Scott outlining the Coalition’s thought leadership on the future of work, including the changing nature and structure of work and the economy, and urging for the inclusion of the Coalition’s perspective as the Committee develops legislative priorities on these topics. This letter follows the NDC’s successful efforts to secure language in the FY2020 funding bill to require the Bureau of Labor Statistics to collect data every two years on contingent and alternative work arrangements to better understand the realities of the evolving structure of work.
 
The House and Senate also passed two appropriations packages – 12 bills in total – to fully fund the government through FY2020. The packages committed funding to several important domestic, national security, and international priorities, and included key reauthorizations and provisions that were priorities for the Coalition and individual Members, including a long term reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank and Terrorism Risk Insurance program, expanding retirement security through the SECURE Act, the extension of important clean energy incentives, and the elimination of the Medical Device Tax, Health Insurance Tax and Cadillac Tax. The funding legislation contains numerous victories for the Democratic Party.
 
Finally, the House passed Articles of Impeachment against President Donald Trump holding the President accountable for abusing his position of power to achieve political aims at the expense of our national security and the integrity of our democracy. All NDC Members voted for the articles of impeachment because no one is above the law. Read more from Chair Derek Kilmer.

More on what Members have been up to below.

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