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Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Announcements and Statements, Blog posts

Demand Progress, Congressional Progressive Staff Association, and Congressional Workers Union Urge Congress to Approve Congressional Staff Pay Overtime Regulations

By DanielSchuman March 17, 2023 4 min read

Demand Progress Action joined forces with the Congressional Progressive Staff Association (CPSA) and the Congressional Workers Union to implore leaders from both chambers to enact Office of Congressional Workplace Rights (OCWR) regulations to update Fair Labor Standards Act overtime provisions for congressional staff before the lame duck session ends. Demand Progress sent letters today to […]

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Appropriations, Appropriation Tracking, Blog posts

Tracker: FY 2024 Approps Testimony and Hearing Deadlines

By DanielSchuman March 15, 2023 1 min read

To make it easier to follow the federal appropriations process, we’ve compiled a spreadsheet to track testimony deadlines for FY 2024 appropriations hearings; it’s also available online here. We’ll continually update the spreadsheet as the remaining member and public testimony deadlines for both chambers are announced. The post Tracker: FY 2024 Approps Testimony and Hearing […]

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Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Announcements and Statements, Blog posts, Reports & Analysis

Demand Progress Education Fund Affirms Right to Unionize by Congressional Staff in New Analysis of House Rules that Sought to End Unionization

By DanielSchuman March 14, 2023 5 min read

“Unions in the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress,” a new report released today by the Demand Progress Education Fund, analyzes how the new House Rules aimed at rolling back the rights of House staff to unionize fall short of achieving that purpose. Its analysis shows House staff can assert their rights to organize […]

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Accountability and Oversight, Appropriations, Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Modernization, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for March 13, 2023: House Unions Can Continue

By DanielSchuman March 13, 2023 17 min read

TOP LINE We have to hand it to the Committee on House Administration for roaring out of the gate in the 118th Congress. Last week, it garnered reform ideas from members, held the first Modernization Subcommittee hearing, and allotted committee funds with significant increases nearly across the board. The Legislative Branch Subcommittee on Appropriations, meanwhile, […]

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Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Announcements and Statements, Announcements, Blog posts

Demand Progress Extols Senator Markey’s Staff for Seeking Voluntary Recognition of their Union, Urges Senate to Introduce Resolution Allowing Senate and Joint Staff to Unionize

By DanielSchuman March 9, 2023 2 min read

Today, the staff for Senator Markey’s office took the unprecedented step of seeking voluntary recognition of their effort to unionize. Although the House of Representatives in the 117th Congress granted its employees the ability to exercise their rights to collectively negotiate, the Senate has yet to take similar action. Demand Progress supports Senator Markey’s staff […]

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Congressional Security, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, Modernization, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for March 6, 2023: Members Request Staff Funding

By DanielSchuman March 6, 2023 13 min read

TOP LINE Money decisions figured prominently in a shortened work week for the House. Committee leaders followed suit with Senate counterparts in requesting more funds for their staff in the coming fiscal year, while appropriators established tighter controls over the earmarks process. CHA, meanwhile, has grabbed the spotlight early in this Congress. This week … The […]

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AI and Emerging Technology, Appropriations, Congressional Security, Ethics and Influence, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for February 27, 2023: Videodome

By DanielSchuman February 27, 2023 13 min read

TOP LINE Speaker Kevin McCarthy interjected himself into the debate over US Capitol Police openness and transparency in a major way by releasing the entirety of video recorded by its cameras on January 6, 2021 to Tucker Carlson at Fox News. The how and why of this decision are going to distract from the what […]

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Accountability and Oversight, Appropriations, Congressional Workplace Fairness and Inclusion, First Branch Forecast, Blog posts

First Branch Forecast for February 21, 2023: Help Wanted: AOC

By DanielSchuman February 23, 2023 10 min read

TOP LINE The lights are off and no one is home as Congress takes an extended break for the Presidents’ Day holiday (which the newsletter also observed). When they return, the Senate committees have a clear path to staff up now that the Rules Committee has allocated budget allotments for each as it does at […]

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AI and Emerging Technology, Appropriations, First Branch Forecast

First Branch Forecast for February 13, 2023: Eagle eye

By DanielSchuman February 13, 2023 21 min read

TOP LINE It’s hard not to have 21st-century risks facing Congress at top of mind some weeks. We uncovered a serious breach of privacy and independence affecting individual members of Congress involving the FBI that requires immediate action to shield members and staff from unlawful warrantless surveillance. With the help of some sharp colleagues, we […]

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Accountability and Oversight, Appropriations, Appropriation Tracking, Blog posts

Appointments of Legislative Branch Office and Agency Heads

By DanielSchuman January 10, 2023 10 min read

Written by Taylor J. Swift There are over 30 support offices and agencies within the Legislative branch, including the Government Accountability Office, the Architect of the Capitol, the Library of Congress, the United States Capitol Police, and more. How are agency heads chosen and how are they removed? The answer is not always clear. At […]

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Appropriations, Appropriation Tracking, Blog posts

Legislative Branch Funding Breakdown in the FY 2023 Omnibus Bill

By DanielSchuman January 5, 2023 5 min read

The FY 2023 appropriations omnibus was passed by both houses of Congress and signed by President Biden. The FY 2023 Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill was rolled into the package, and it is packed with good government initiatives and significant investments in Congress’s capacity to legislate, conduct oversight, serve constituents, and more. We and our civil […]

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