Congressional Recap: Senate Works On Foreign, Domestic Policy

The House of Representatives was off this week due to a district work period, while senators pushed through legislation running the gamut.

The following is a breakdown of the week that was in the nation’s capital:

COTTON VOTES NO ON IRAN BILL
The Senate voted 98-1 Thursday in favor of a bill giving Congress the opportunity to look at a nuclear deal with Iran.

The only no vote was Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.

The bill would require a completed deal to be submitted to Congress, which could then vote to approve or disapprove the nuclear proposal within 30 days. Sanctions on Iran could not be lifted during this consideration, Washington, D.C.-based publication The Hill reported.

Cotton said he believes the Constitution must be followed on the issue.

“A nuclear-arms agreement with any adversary — especially the terror-sponsoring, Islamist Iranian regime — should be submitted as a treaty and obtain a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate as required by the Constitution. President Obama wants to reverse this rule, requiring opponents to get a two-thirds vote to stop his dangerous deal,” Cotton said. “But Congress should not accept this usurpation, nor allow the president any grounds to claim that Congress blessed his nuclear deal. I will work with Republicans and Democrats to stop a dangerous deal that would put Iran on the path to obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., voted yes on the bill, which now goes to the House.

COTTON SPONSORS PHARMACY ACCESS BILL
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., on Tuesday joined three Senate colleagues in introducing legislation to help preserve senior citizens’ access to the prescription drugs and healthcare services provided by community pharmacies.

The bill, Ensuring Seniors Access to Local Pharmacies Act, S. 1190, is also co-sponsored by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-WV, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV and Sherrod Brown, D-OH.

The Ensuring Seniors Access to Local Pharmacies Act of 2015 would require that community pharmacies in medically underserved areas (MUAs), medically underserved populations (MUPs) and health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) be allowed to participate in Medicare Part D preferred pharmacy networks if they are willing to accept the contract terms and conditions of existing preferred providers. The bill will give seniors more choice, allow community pharmacies to compete and preserve access to medical services in underserved areas.

“Local pharmacies play a critical role in rural states like Arkansas where larger, chain pharmacies can often be hours away. But many of these local pharmacies are struggling to keep their doors open because pharmacy benefit managers refuse to include them in their coverage. This bill would allow smaller pharmacies in Arkansas and across the country to accept the same contract terms as larger, in-network pharmacies. Rest assured, I will continue to fight for access to quality medical care in Arkansas’s rural communities,” Cotton said.

The bill is a companion to H.R. 793, The Ensuring Seniors Access to Local Pharmacies Act, which currently has 38 bipartisan co-sponsors in the House of Representatives.

BOOZMAN SUPPORTING NATIONAL MILITARY APPRECIATION MONTH
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., said Thursday he is collecting pictures and stories highlighting Arkansas’ military spouses to share during National Military Appreciation Month.

“Our military families make tremendous sacrifices. As a state that is home to thousands of active duty military personnel, their spouses are the homefront heroes who deserve a fitting recognition for their role in keeping our country safe. These men and women support our troops at home, during deployments and in mission transitions. Military spouses are essential to the wellbeing of our service members and the strength of our national defense. I look forward to highlighting Arkansas’s military spouses and honoring these unsung champions of our Armed Forces,” Boozman said.

The photos and stories can be sent to [email protected], with the photos and stories being posted on Boozman’s Senate website.

BOOZMAN SUPPORTS WATER QUALITY PROTECTION ACT
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., on Thursday added his support to legislation that he says would protect the nation’s waters and the rights of landowners against overly burdensome and costly regulatory power-grabs by Washington.

The Federal Water Quality Protection Act, which Boozman is co-sponsoring, directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers to revise the “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule to exclude waters that have never been controlled by the federal government like isolated ponds, ditches and agriculture water that lack enough flow to carry pollutants to navigable waters.

“Arkansas’s agriculture producers are rightfully concerned about the WOTUS rule and how it will limit their ability to use their land and grow their crops. I appreciate the efforts of my colleagues to work to rein in EPA and give the agency direction to write a rule that protects our waters without eroding the rights of landowners,” Boozman said. “By creating specific guidelines for EPA to implement, this legislation returns rule-making authority back to Congress and avoid additional regulatory hurdles.”