What's Going On In Washington - June 2017

June 20, 2017 11:50 AM

As we celebrate LGBTQ Pride Month and all it means to live OUT & Proud, it is essential that our community is aware of the many public policy decisions and movements of the federal government that will undoubtedly have major implications on those that live at the intersection of race and LGBTQ/SGL identity. With this in mind, NBJC is honored to present the June 2017 Edition of What’s Going On In Washington. This education tool provides brief updates on many of the issues that are being debated and decided in our nation’s capital. We hope you are able to utilize these updates as a way to empower yourself and take action to ensure your elected representatives in Washington know where you stand on the issues.

Trump Administration FY18 Budget

NBJC is opposed to the draconian cuts presented in the recently released budget for fiscal year 2018 that will impact many of the most marginalized in our nation. Here are some critical cuts our community should be aware of:

Department of Justice

Under AG Sessions, DOJ has recently moved on expanding the so-called “War on Drugs” in the following areas:

Department of Education

Plans to delay regulations reigning in for-profit colleges, including the borrower defense rule and the gainful employment rule.
Issued concerning guidance on transgender students.

Commerce Department

The Department removed sexual orientation and gender identity from equal employment policy...Then inserted it back.

Department of Defense

DOD is expected to announce whether or not they will pursue an inclusive policy that allows transgender people to serve openly.

Executive Memo on Dreamers

In good news, the Trump administration has announced that they won’t alter the status for current Dreamers.

FCC Proposes To End Net Neutrality

No Pride Month Recognition from 45

Health Care Legislation | ACA Repeal

Senate Republicans are moving full steam ahead for a vote by the end of June, which will repeal the Affordable Care Act and much of the progress we have made as a nation to grant access to health insurance for many Americans.

NBJC publicly opposed the House passed American Health Care Act or AHCA.

TAKE ACTION TODAY!!!

Call your senators toll-free at 866-426-2631 and tell them to vote “no” on the American Health Care Act and any proposal that:

Ends Medicaid expansion at any point in time.
Destroys the Medicaid program as we know it by changing the structure through per capita caps or block grants.
Increases the number of people without health insurance.
Undermines the consumer protections put in place by the Affordable Care Act.

Wall Street Legislation

The House of Reps passed the Financial Choice Act that will rollback many of the Obama-era policies to regulate Wall-Street. The legislation now moves to the Senate.

PRIDE Act Reintroduced

On June 13, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) reintroduced the LGBT PRIDE Act, which would enhance the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) by calling for improvements to its data collection on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Judicial Nominees

The Senate held hearings on June 14 for several judicial nominees including two that NBJC publicly opposes:

John K. Bush (6th Circuit Court)
Damien Schiff (Federal Claims Court)

Read the Lambda Legal letter NBJC signed-on in opposition to these nominees that would be deeply troubling for our community if confirmed by the US Senate.

NC Voting Rights Decision

In May, the Supreme Court held that lawmakers relied too heavily on race in drawing congressional districts in North Carolina. The decision in the case (Cooper v. Harris) follows the Supreme Court’s May 15 refusal to hear an appeal of a lower court decision (North Carolina v. North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP) that held that North Carolina unconstitutionally targeted African-Americans by instituting strict voter ID requirements.

Travel Ban

The 9th Circuit ruled against the Trump Admin’s revised executive order limiting travel from six predominantly Muslim countries.

Emoluments Lawsuits Filed

In addition to the lawsuit filed by the Attorney Generals from DC and Maryland, almost 200 legislators have filed an additional emoluments lawsuit against Trump.

Religious Freedom Case

The ACLU and the EEOC have each filed a reply brief in the 6th Circuit. The case is an appeal of a terrible lower court decision holding that RFRA provided an exemption from Title VII in a case involving a transgender woman who was terminated from her job at a funeral home in Michigan.

Upcoming Supreme Court Decisions

Next week, the Supreme Court will hand down their final decisions for the current term. Here are some key cases that will be decided:

Other SCOTUS News

Supreme Court to hear potentially landmark case on partisan gerrymandering next term.