Congressional legislation, June 20, 2016 – June 24, 2016

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The United States Senate was in session from June 20, 2016, to June 23, 2016. The upper chamber debated gun control measures but failed to pass any of the six measures that came up for a vote. The United States House of Representatives was in session during those same days—June 20 to June 23—and on that final day, the House voted to adjourn earlier than expected due to House Democrats taking control of the floor to stage a sit-in concerning gun control legislation.

June 20, 2016

Senate

• The Senate rejected the following gun control measures:

• The Senate rejected S Amdt 4749 to S Amdt 4720 (which amends S Amdt 4685) by a vote of 53-47. Sixty votes were needed to move forward with the amendment. The amendment, introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), proposed allowing the U.S. attorney general to "delay the transfer of the firearm or explosive for a period not to exceed 3 business days" to an individual "investigated as a known or suspected terrorist." The waiting period would have given the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) time to investigate an individual who was suspected of terrorist activities during the previous five years and would have allowed the DOJ to obtain a court order to prevent the individual from obtaining a firearm or explosive.

• The Senate rejected S Amdt 4750 to HR 2578 by a vote of 44-56. Sixty votes were needed to move forward with the amendment. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), proposed "ensur[ing] that all individuals who should be prohibited from buying a firearm are listed in the national instant criminal background check system and requir[ing] a background check for every firearm sale."

• The Senate rejected S Amdt 4751 to S Amdt 4750 by a vote of 53-47. Sixty votes were needed to move forward with the amendment. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), proposed (1) reauthorizing funding for the National Criminal Instant Background Check System, (2) providing incentives for states that submitted mental health records to the federal government, and (3) limiting federal agencies from selling firearms.

• The Senate rejected S Amdt 4720 to S Amdt 4685 by a vote of 47-53. Sixty votes were needed to move forward with the amendment. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), proposed prohibiting individuals on federal terror watchlists from buying firearms and explosives.

June 21, 2016

House

• The House rejected HR 5525 - the End Taxpayer Funded Cell Phones Act of 2016 by a vote of 207-143. The legislation required a two-thirds majority to pass.

• The House passed HR 5388 - the Support for Rapid Innovation Act of 2016 by a vote of 351-4.

• The House passed HR 5389 - the Leveraging Emerging Technologies Act of 2016 by a vote of 347-8.

June 22, 2016

Senate

• Key vote: The Senate rejected S Amdt 4787 to S Amdt 4685 by a vote of 58-38. Sixty votes were needed to move forward with the amendment. The legislation proposed allowing the FBI to access electronic data without a warrant during investigations involving terrorism and making “permanent the authority for individual terrorists to be treated as agents of foreign powers under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978.”

House

• The House failed to override President Barack Obama’s veto of HJ Res 88 - Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to the definition of the term "Fiduciary" by a vote of 239-180. A two-thirds majority was needed to override the veto. The resolution proposed preventing the U.S. Department of Labor from implementing a rule that requires retirement investment advisors to put their customers' interests first when providing advice.

June 23, 2016

Senate

• The Senate rejected the following gun control measure:

• The Senate voted to avoid tabling S Amdt 4858 to HR 2578 by a vote of 46-52, but it failed to reach the 60-vote threshold necessary to move forward. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), proposed preventing individuals on the No Fly List and the Selectee List from purchasing firearms or explosives. Additionally, the legislation proposed a process for individuals to appeal the denial of the right to purchase a firearm in federal court.

• The Senate voted to table S Amdt 4859 to S Amdt 4858 by a vote of 67-31. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), proposed preventing an individual on the No Fly List or Selectee List from purchasing a firearm or explosive by giving the U.S. attorney general the "authority to delay the transfer of a weapon for up to three business days while relevant law enforcement agencies conduct an investigation."

House

• Key vote: The House passed legislation that provides $1.1 billion to fight Zika, a mosquito-borne virus that can cause paralysis and severe birth defects, by a vote of 239-171. The White House threatened to veto the bill. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said, "This is a bill that would steal money from other critically important public health priorities. We urge Republicans to stop turning this into a political football, and to actually get to work to come up with proposals that will serve the American people." Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) countered that "It is a responsible plan that assures the administration will continue to have the needed resources to protect the public."

June 24, 2016

• No legislative votes were held.

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