My Bipartisan E-Delivery Amendment Passed the House

On March 8th, the House passed H.R. 2799, the Expanding Access to Capital Act, which included my amendment on e-delivery. Despite opposition from some leading Democrats, I was glad to see more than 60 Democrats support this commonsense approach. With this bipartisan amendment, Congress can make access to important investment information less costly, more timely, and more secure.

To learn more about my commonsense e-delivery amendment, watch my remarks during debate on the House floor below.

Delivering a Major Win for Southwest Michigan Farmers

Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued its final rule to require climate-related risk disclosures. As Chairman of the House Financial Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, I have been closely following this rule and its impact on farmers, small business owners, and consumers.

Earlier this year, I invited Bill Schultz, the Vice President of Schultz Fruitridge Farms in Mattawan, to testify before Congress on this issue. I am happy to report that while more work needs to be done, the revised rule importantly dropped what are known as scope 3 reporting requirements. 

This regulation would have been particularly costly and frankly devastating to family farmers and small businesses. While I continue to believe the SEC is operating well outside the authority Congress has permitted the agency to have, the removal of scope 3 is a significant win. I am proud of the role Southwest Michigan played in protecting jobs, family farms, and agriculture not just here in Michigan but across the nation.

Because the SEC substantially changed the rule from its original proposal, it appears they are in direct violation of the Administrative Procedures Act, which governs the way in which federal agencies propose and establish regulations. For this, I believe the SEC should repropose the rule and reopen the comment period. 

I will continue to hold the SEC and its chairman accountable, and I want to publicly thank Bill Schultz for making his voice heard on this issue. I encourage you to click the picture above to learn more about this important issue.

Your Opinions on the Hur Report

This week, Special Counsel Robert Hur testified before congress on the findings of the investigation he led into President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents.  

The Department of Justice report released the “Hur Report” on February 8th which stated that Joe Biden "willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen." 

While the Special Counsel concluded criminal charges were not warranted, he did raise concerns about President Biden’s mental state saying,  “It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him--by then a former president well into his eighties--of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness."

The President denied Special Counsel Hur’s assessment of his mental state. Given the findings of the Hur Report, I thought it was important to hear from Southwest Michigan on this topic, so I asked the following question: Are you concerned about President Biden's ability to continue serving as Commander-in-Chief?  

Here are the results from the survey.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this survey and for reading this edition of the Huddle! If you or someone you know is having difficulties with a federal agency, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office in Holland or my office in Portage. Have a great weekend!