WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $90,988,247 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants in disaster aid for Louisiana.
“This $91 million will help south and central Louisiana clear debris, fix infrastructure and recover from other hurricane damage that hit our communities,” said Kennedy.
The FEMA aid will fund the following:
- $69,174,600 to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury for debris removal related to Hurricane Laura.
- $5,879,314 to Rapides Parish for public assistance debris removal related to Hurricane Laura.
- $4,684,272 to the Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff’s Office for the public assistance program related to Hurricane Katrina.
- $2,620,625 to St. Helena Parish for right-of-way debris removal and monitoring related to Hurricane Ida.
- $1,769,842 to the city of Sulphur for emergency protective measures related to Hurricane Laura.
- $1,764,884 to the Chennault International Airport Authority for damages to a pumphouse that Hurricane Laura damaged.
- $1,555,518 to Lake Charles Harbor and Terminal District to replace a transit shed that Hurricane Laura damaged.
- $1,251,696 to the Tangipahoa Parish School System for emergency protective measures related to Hurricane Ida.
- $1,251,420 to the Catahoula Parish Police Jury for permanent repairs to Jug Bend Road related to Hurricane Delta.
- $1,036,076 to the city of Denham Springs for right of way debris removal and monitoring related to Hurricane Ida.
House passes Kennedy bill to help small business owners buy, sell, merge Main Street firms
May 12 2022
WASHINGTON – The House has passed Sen. John Kennedy’s (R-La.) Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions, Sales and Brokerage Simplification Act, which would help small business owners access the services of small business merger and acquisition (M&A) brokers.
M&A brokers assist small business owners who want to sell their businesses or merge with other firms so that their companies can continue expanding and supporting job growth.
“This bill would give small businesses more flexibility to create and sustain jobs. The Senate has the chance now to pass this bill quickly so that job creators can continue building stronger businesses that serve their employees and communities,” said Kennedy.
The bill would allow small business M&A brokers to organize sales and purchases of ownership as well as the control of private companies without registering as “broker-dealers” with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Removing the requirement to register with the SEC and FINRA would remove a bureaucratic roadblock that M&A brokers face when trying to assist small businesses. Kennedy’s bill would make M&A services more affordable and accessible to small business owners who need help buying or selling companies.
Kennedy’s bill now awaits passage in the Senate.
Text of the Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions, Sales and Brokerage Simplification Act is available here.
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) released the following statement upon voting against Sen. Schumer’s attempt to force states to legalize abortion up to the point of a child’s birth. The bill goes far beyond the bounds of Roe v. Wade to prohibit states from protecting life even after viability.
“Is the Senate working to lower inflation or secure the southern border this week? No. Sen. Schumer can’t be bothered to care about what Louisianians and Americans need most. Instead, he asked us to vote to nullify state laws and legalize abortion up to the moment of birth.
“His bill would also allow aborting a child because of the child’s sex. It would remove religious liberty protections for health care providers who believe life begins before birth. It would block laws that require parental consent or notification before an abortion. It is a very radical bill.
“This is why Washington insiders don’t get to tell Louisianians what their values should be.”
Kennedy introduces bill to establish Special IG to oversee use of American taxpayer aid to Ukraine
May 11 2022
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced the Independent and Objective Oversight of Ukrainian Assistance Act to establish a Special Inspector General (IG) for Ukraine. The Special IG would oversee the humanitarian, economic and security assistance funding that the U.S. Congress has provided to the country, and make sure that the funds are appropriately spent.
Kennedy is introducing the bill as Congress considers nearly $40 billion in additional supplemental aid to the European nation. The U.S. has already provided $13.6 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian people have defended their country’s sovereignty with bravery and grit. Congress has already supported their fight against Putin’s war of aggression with billions and billions of dollars in aid and military equipment. American taxpayers deserve to know that their money is helping Ukraine beat back Russia effectively, and Congress needs to guarantee that oversight,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy’s bill would equip the Special IG for Ukraine with $20 million from the money that Congress has already provided in Ukraine aid. That $20 million represents less than 0.04% of the more than $50 billion in supplemental aid that has been or may be sent to Ukraine.
In order to prevent expanding bureaucracy indefinitely, the bill also includes a termination clause to end the Special IG role once U.S. taxpayer spending for Ukraine drops below $250 million per year.
The text of the bill is available here.
Kennedy, Daines urge Biden administration against banning lead ammo and tackle on public lands
May 11 2022
“Policies or actions that reduce or limit sportsmen activities necessarily implicate wildlife conservation programs by affecting state agencies’ revenue. Such policies or actions also handcuff wildlife managers by removing a critical conservation tool while needlessly alienating one of our original conservationists, sportsmen,” the senators wrote.
“Phasing-out lead ammo and tackle on wildlife refuges would disproportionately affect lower-income households and those that depend on hunting and fishing for their subsistence as lead alternatives are often more expensive. The impact of such a policy would be devastating to the sportsmen heritage in our states,” they concluded.
Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W. Va.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) also signed the letter.
The letter is available here.
Kennedy, colleagues call on Supreme Court to end consideration of race in college admissions
May 09 2022
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today joined a bicameral group of 82 legislators, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.), in filing an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief to the Supreme Court in the cases Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina.
At both schools, considering race allowed admissions offices to discriminate against Asian-American applicants, despite their superior GPAs and standardized test scores.
“Harvard College and the University of North Carolina indisputably use race as an important consideration in deciding whom to admit. Record evidence suggests, in fact, that the challenged admissions policies may strive for racial balancing—an aim that is unconstitutional on its face,” lawmakers wrote.
“Race-conscious admissions decisions inflict a heavy toll on Asian-American students. Treating them differently because of their race is a stark departure from equal protection decisions issued early on by this Court, which guarded Asian immigrants from racial prejudice. And the burdens imposed on petitioner illustrate a wider trend. Asian-Americans are increasingly victimized by discriminatory practices,” they explained.
Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) also joined the brief.
The brief is available here.
WASHINGTON – The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works today passed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) with key provisions for Louisiana that Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) successfully negotiated into the bill. The 2022 WRDA package now awaits a vote in the full Senate.
“With the crucial provisions we negotiated for our state, WRDA would help restore ecosystems in south Louisiana and ensure that important Army Corps of Engineers projects get completed sooner,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy fought to include in WRDA several measures that would expedite Army Corps of Engineers projects in Louisiana and a provision that would substantially reduce Louisiana’s cost share to perform ecosystem restoration in areas degraded by the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) navigation channel.
The MRGO navigation channel was closed after Hurricane Katrina, but the state has not yet restored the habitats that the channel damaged. Louisiana normally covers 35 percent of the cost of Corps of Engineers projects while the federal government covers 65 percent. The WRDA provision that Kennedy helped negotiate increases the federal share of restoring the MRGO to 90 percent of the project’s cost.
Other Kennedy victories in WRDA include directing the Corps of Engineers to:
- Resume operation, maintenance, repair, rehabilitation and replacement of the Algiers Canal Levees at full federal expense.
- Prioritize the Louisiana Coastal Area Project.
- Expedite completion of studies for coastal storm risk management in St. Tammany Parish and south-central coastal Louisiana.
- Mandate a low-cost, environmentally-friendly plan to dispose of dredged material as part of the Port Fourchon Belle Pass Channel Deepening Project. This plan could allow Louisiana to start this project sooner than alternative plans and would allow the state to use the dredged material to create additional wetlands.
Kennedy’s statement on leak of SCOTUS document
May 03 2022
WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today released the following statement on the leak of a draft opinion in the U.S. Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
“Preserving the Supreme Court’s integrity is vital, and this unprecedented leak attacks its independence and legitimacy. For the sake of the court and Americans’ confidence in its independence, a thorough and robust investigation is needed to find and punish the leaker.
“As I’ve said many times before, Roe v. Wade was wrongly decided and should be reversed. Everyone on either side of this issue should, however, condemn the leak and demand that we hold the leaker accountable.”
Currently, executives of U.S. publicly-traded companies must disclose any trades they make of their own company’s stocks to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) within two business days of the trade. Executives of foreign firms, however, are not required to make such timely disclosures. Foreign executives are exempt from this requirement, and must only paper-file these disclosures to the SEC long after they have made their trades. The lag this system creates means that foreign executives can keep trades private for a longer period of time, which promotes insider trading at the expense of everyday American investors.
“Without being required to make quick disclosures, Chinese and Russian executives—along with many other foreign company insiders—have been able to make trades to avoid personal losses that can leave other investors in the lurch. I’m introducing the Holding Foreign Insiders Accountable Act to level the field between American and foreign firms, discourage insider trading and help Americans make more informed choices about where to invest their hard-earned money,” said Kennedy.
The bill would specifically amend Section 16 (a) of the Securities Exchange Act to require executives of public companies based outside the U.S. to make electronic disclosures of trades in their company’s stocks to the SEC within two business days. The SEC would then make that information available to public. This is the standard that currently applies to firms based in the U.S.
Text of the Holding Foreign Insiders Accountable Act is available here.
ICYMI: Congress has an easy way to create American jobs and reduce greenhouse gases—the Senate must ratify
Apr 28 2022
“Win-win opportunities aren’t easy to find in politics, but sometimes single solutions exist to help tackle several challenges. Cleaning up super-polluting hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) is one of those rare solutions that will boost our economy and help protect our planet.”
. . .
“For years, American companies have been at the forefront of developing HFC alternatives, so by phasing down HFCs we help promote U.S. leadership in the innovation and manufacturing of new climate-safe products. That’s what brought us together to write and pass the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act in 2020, a law that phases down the production and use of HFCs by 85% over the next 15 years. Transitioning away from HFCs drives more investments in American-made technologies that are better for the environment, cheaper for consumers, and good for the economy.
“The AIM Act is expected to create 33,000 new manufacturing jobs and help more than 130,000 Americans keep their current jobs over the next five years in communities across the country including our home states of Louisiana and Delaware.”
. . .
“This manufacturing boost will also be good for Louisiana, where plants in Geismar, Baton Rouge, and St. Gabriel could create more jobs and save hundreds of existing jobs by transitioning to production of safer coolants. And Louisiana companies involved in the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) industry could benefit, as well. The international HVACR market could more than double over the next decade, and Louisiana’s HVACR industry can produce appliances that don’t rely on HFCs—appliances that we could then export to make the most out of this industry’s growth.”
. . .
“But our work isn’t done yet. While the AIM Act has helped position America to reap the domestic fruits of transitioning away from HFCs, it can’t ensure that we’ll keep beating competitors (and super-polluters) like China and India unless America is a full partner in international efforts to phase out these substances.
“In order to see the full economic and environmental benefits of transitioning away from HFCs, the Senate must now ratify the Kigali Amendment. By building on the successes of the AIM Act, ratifying the Kigali Amendment will expand the global market for American-made technologies and safeguard U.S. investments.
“More than 170 countries support the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which obliges its signers to gradually phase down their HFC usage by 85%. China and India have both ratified the amendment. Starting in 2033, the Kigali Amendment would impose trade restrictions between countries that comply with the HFC phasedown agreement and those that do not.
“The AIM Act is already bringing the U.S. into alignment with the Kigali Amendment’s plan to phase down HFCs. It only makes economic sense that the Senate now ratify this agreement to ensure that the U.S. can capitalize on the success of the AIM Act instead of unnecessarily limiting our trade partners and giving our competitors—or even adversaries like China—a leg up at the expense of hardworking Americans.”
The op-ed is available here.
