House panel-approved bill includes NAFCU-sought CFPB, TCPA provisions The House Appropriations Committee on Thursday voted 30-17 in approving a fiscal 2017 financial services and general government appropriations bill that includes a handful of NAFCU-sought provisions relating to the CFPB and the FCC’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act rules.   NAFCU-sought provisions seeking… Read more »

Agencies lay out contracting regulations coming this year The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive. The Veterans Affairs Department fired three more senior executives at the Phoenix VA hospital. The center’s associate director, Lance Robinson, Chief of Health Administration Service Brad Curry, and Chief of Staff… Read more »

DHS funding for new headquarters slashed in FY 2017 bill A House Appropriations subcommittee delivered a major setback to the funding of a consolidated Department of Homeland Security headquarters campus on Wednesday. The $41.1 billion DHS funding bill passed the subcommittee, but cut $126 million in funding from the St. Elizabeths headquarters campus in Southeast Washington,… Read more »

House appropriations bill amendment would delay enforcement of CFPB payday loan rule According to a Politico report, the House Appropriations Committee has advanced a bipartisan amendment to the FY17 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill that would block the CFPB from enforcing a rule regulating payday and vehicle title loans until the CFPB submits a detailed… Read more »

99 percent satisfaction at TSA? Congressman questions agencies’ customer service data Agencies are too selective about what they choose to include — and omit — in their quarterly customer service reports onPerformance.gov, one congressman said. And he wants agencies to start holding themselves to higher performance standards, preferably measures they don’t create… Read more »

Olson’s Ozone Bill Could Use a Vehicle, But the Energy Bill’s Out Rep. Pete Olson’s controversial bill pushing back against the Obama administration’s ozone standards needs a bipartisan vehicle to be signed into law. But it’s not clear what that vehicle is. Olson spokeswoman Melissa Kelly initially told Morning Consult on Tuesday that Olson would try include… Read more »

It’s Not True That No One in Congress Takes Government Performance Seriously Henry Cuellar is more than a little delighted to talk about government performance and customer service. After all, it’s not every day the Texas Democrat is asked to expound on a subject that’s clearly near and dear to his heart. And since he’s not only the driving force behind the 2010 Government Performance… Read more »

High-speed passenger rail line could link San Antonio to Monterrey SAN ANTONIO -- The first international passenger train between the U.S. and Mexico could become reality right here in south Texas. Congressman Henry Cuellar says we're closer than ever to seeing a high-speed passenger rail line that links San Antonio to Monterrey. He's been pushing for this project since 2008. He calls… Read more »

Cornyn pushes bill on trade Cornyn pushes bill on trade BROWNSVILLE — Up in Washington D.C., Sen. John Cornyn is busy trying to pass a bill that would positively impact border cities. The bill, called the “Cross-Border Trade Enhancement Act,” would encourage public-private partnerships with U.S. Customs and Border… Read more »

Today Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28) announced that the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved language in H.R. 5303, the Water Resources Development Act of 2016 (WRDA, pronounced WUR-duh), to authorize a feasibility study on rehabilitating Chacon Creek in Laredo. The committee unanimously approved this legislation today. The language provides for a study on… Read more »