April 29, 2016

Angel Investors

On Wednesday the House considered H.R. 4498, the Helping Angels Lead Our Startups Act. This legislation amends parts of the JOBS Act (Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act) which became law in 2012. The purpose of that legislation was to make it easier for certain small businesses to generate capital by easing existing Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules regarding the way they can raise money from investors. The JOBS Act required businesses to make a good faith effort to verify that those purchasing securities were in fact accredited investors under SEC rules. I voted against that legislation, in part because of the way it loosened SEC investor protections. H.R. 4498 goes beyond codifying relief that the SEC has already granted and opens up potential loopholes to the verification rules passed in the JOBS Act. I voted NO. H.R. 4498 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:

Department of Labor

On Thursday the House considered H.J. Res. 88, disapproving a new Department of Labor rule that requires investment advisors to act in the best interests of their clients when providing retirement investment advice. H.J. Res. 88 was considered through the Congressional Review Act to block the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Conflict of Interest Retirement Investment rule which was issued a few weeks ago and does not go into effect until next year. The intent of the DOL rule is to update regulations in place since the 1975 Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). There have been many changes to the retirement landscape since then, including the introduction of the 401(k) plan and the widespread use of IRAs. The DOL rule simply makes clear that financial advisors have a fiduciary duty to place the interests of their clients first when recommending investment vehicles. I voted NO. H.J. Res. 88 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:

Private School Vouchers

Today the House considered H.R. 4901, the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Reauthorization Act. This legislation reauthorizes the Washington D.C. private school voucher program through September of 2021. Consideration of H.R. 4901 is surprising because the House already passed legislation reauthorizing this program and it awaits Senate action. Today’s vote was unnecessary. Aside from that, I could not support H.R. 4901. Students in the D.C. voucher program do not have the protections available through federal civil rights laws that pertain to public schools, such as Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. There is also no evidence that this voucher program, which is the only one of its kind established by the federal government, has had any meaningful impact on improving academic performance. I voted NO. H.R. 4901 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:

What’s Up Next

A District Work Period is scheduled. The next House votes will occur on Tuesday May 10th.