Hello Neighbor–

Happy first day of December, and the start of Advent season to those who celebrate. It’s feeling festive around the U.S. Capitol. We kicked off this week with the annual bipartisan Christmas tree lighting. Each year, the tree is carefully selected by the U.S. Forest Service from one of many U.S. National Forests around the country. Michigan has PROUDLY sent three trees over the years, and you better believe I’m angling for another one soon. But this year’s tree is a towering 63-foot Norway Spruce from the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia. Look at how beautiful she looks in this picture I took at the ceremony! 


The tree is decorated with over 5,000 ornaments from kids across the state from which the tree hails. In a nod to this tradition, we’re asking students from across the district to help us decorate our office Christmas tree for visitors to adore! Send them in as you would a letter to: 

Office of Congresswoman Hillary Scholten
1317 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

We had a whopper of a week in DC. Here’s what we’ve been up to, and what we have in store for next week. 

The Week In Review

Legislative Action

With Republicans settling into a bit more of a rhythm with their new Speaker, they were finally able to bring some bills to the floor that we’ve been working so hard on! And this week, we passed TWO bills that I helped to lead through the Small Business committee. 

Watch me speak on the House floor about these bills here.

First, the POST IT Act, which I co-led with Mark Molinaro (R-NY), will require the Small Business Administration (SBA) to post any new regulations with a significant impact on Small Businesses on the Ombudsman’s website. By and large, Small Businesses WANT to comply with federal regulations, but keeping track of ever-changing rules poses a major hurdle for small businesses who often don’t have a full legal, accounting, or compliance program. Our bill requires the SBA to be PROACTIVE in communicating changes, so businesses can more easily stay informed, and comply. It’s a win-win. 

The second bill we passed was the Small Business Contracting Transparency Act Which also addresses transparency issues, this time in the Small Business contracting space. You can read more about these bills here.

Our last vote of the week was a successful vote to expel Representative George Santos from Congress. The U.S. Constitution provides a process by which members of the U.S. House may move to expel a current member if ⅔ of the House votes in the affirmative. The grounds for expelling a member are fairly open, granting the body the discretion to punish members for ‘disorderly behavior.’

Though the conduct resulting in an expulsion is open-ended, the vote threshold is high. Over 60% of the Congress must agree that the member is not fit to serve. Mr. Santos has admitted to deceiving the American people and his own constituents about who he is and what he has done to deserve the job of being a voting member in The People’s House. He has continued to engage in untruthful and deceptive behavior since being elected. His presence in the House serves to undermine the integrity of our work, and I believed expulsion was the right course of action. 

I also signed two letters and cosponsored six bills, including asking to make December 1 Rosa Parks Day. I also cosponsored HR 3170, the HELPER Act, to amend the National Housing Act to establish a mortgage insurance program for first responders. 

Committee Work
This week my Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held an unfortunate, but essential, hearing on the importance of reauthorizing the FAA prior to the (once already extended) deadline of December 31, 2023. It’s unfortunate because a hearing like this shouldn’t be required—we should have already passed the reauthorization. Our committee responsibly worked to pass a bipartisan version of the FAA reauthorization. It passed UNANIMOUSLY out of committee, and then (remarkably) passed the House in the same version it passed committee. Now, we’ve been waiting for months for the Senate to take action. 

Our hearing focused on the devastating impacts that the delayed passage is having on safety, the economy, worker retention, and more. I raised concerns about prolonged delays further impacting workers, shortages in the industry, and exacerbating already dangerous conditions. You can watch my questioning here & read more about this issue in an investigation just released by the New York Times this morning here.

With just two short session weeks remaining before we head back to the district for the holiday recess, we are urging the Senate to quickly pass the updated FAA reauthorization.

Native American Heritage Month

We closed out Native American Heritage Month this week, but in West Michigan, we honor the heritage of our Native people and lands all year long. This year especially, I have been laser-focused on honoring the legacy of the Grand River Band of Ottawa Indians and introduced a bill, with Congressman John Moolenar (R-MI), to get them the federal recognition they have been seeking for over 30 years. You can read more about that work here and read my statement on it here.

We also honored the last day of this Heritage Month with a roundtable with tribal leaders from across the country, led by the very first Native cabinet secretary, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. 

I also welcomed Chairman Jamie Stuck of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi to DC to talk about ways that we can help tribes throughout Michigan. 

Back Home in the District

Our district team was hard at work while I was in DC. Members of my team joined State Representative Fitzgerald’s casework fair to share how our neighbors can benefit from my office’s federal casework assistance. Anissa, my District Director, attended the Michigan Farm Bureau Banquet and celebrated some incredible local leaders in the industry. 

The Week in Preview

Next week, I’ll return to Washington. My T&I Committee will mark up legislation regarding pipelines, an important issue for so many in our community. I will keep you updated throughout the week. My district team will spend time out in the community, including an opportunity to hear from Governor Whitmer on her reflections at the end of another busy and successful year delivering for Michiganders.

Have a great weekend! As always, it’s an honor to serve you, West Michigan.

Sincerely,

Hillary Scholten
Member of Congress