What is the state of action on health care reform in the House and Senate? Given the media's attention to the debate, it's easy to forget that there is not yet an actual final bill ready for vote in either chamber. In the House, Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) is scheduled next week to release a health care bill that melds the three separate bills passed by relevant committees prior to the August break. The delay is due to continued gridlock and intra-party differences among House Democrats; the liberal Progressive Caucus is threatening to oppose a bill if it does not include a public option, while the moderate Blue Dog Caucus is threatening to oppose a bill that would tie reimbursement rates for physicians participating in the public option to Medicare reimbursement rates rather than allowing for direct negotiations between health providers and the government. Additional conflicts include whether to include a surtax on high-income earners (including small businesses that pay income tax at individual rates), favored by Ways & Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY), as a way to fund health care reform.

House Republicans are largely relegated to watching from the sidelines and are expected to oppose the final product when it is released by the Speaker. If all Republicans vote no on the House floor, Speaker Pelosi will not be able to pass a bill unless she has a greater consensus within the Democratic party; thus, negotiations continue.

On the Senate side, similar Democratic divisions exist. Procedurally, the Senate Finance Committee must complete its amendment markup of the Baucus bill (see above) and then Majority Leader Reid will oversee the melding of the more liberal Senate HELP Committee bill with the Finance Committee product in order to write a bill ready for full Senate consideration. If the Senate proceeds through regular order, Democrats will need 60 votes to pass health care reform. The late Senator Kennedy's interim replacement is expected to be sworn in today as the 60^th vote. Reid could also decide to use the option of the parliamentary tactic of "reconciliation" (sometimes referred to as the "nuclear option"), which would only require a simple majority vote of 51 to pass. Senators of both parties have expressed concern over using this tactic, as the health care legislation is generally considered too complex and too controversial for this process. Some Democratic Senators have expressed concern with political fallout for their party in 2010 should the leadership use this tactic.

Among the tax provisions circulating as means to pay for health care reform is one that would expand information reporting requirements at the IRS. This burdensome provision, included in the Baucus health care bill, would require information reporting (on a Form 1099) for all business transactions with a vendor, whether incorporated or not, valued at over $600. The reporting requirement would be for both services and property. The current reporting requirement is for only services of more than $600 from an unincorporated vendor. The provision would substantially increase the number of 1099s that a business will be required to submit. For each vendor, the business would have to submit two forms-one back to the vendor and one to the IRS. The purpose of the provision is to bridge the "tax gap," although many dispute a direct connection to the reporting of this information and the tax gap. Proponents of this tax change say it will raise over $17 billion that will be used to fund health care reform. Printing Industries this week sent a letter to Capitol Hill opposing the tax policy.

An updated Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act guide for printers is posted on www.printing.org. For more information, please view the imPRINT: Special Edition published on Monday.

Senate Majority Leader Reid has announced that he does not intend for the full Senate to act on comprehensive climate change legislation this year due to the time consuming business of legislating health care reform. However, there is increasing concern that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will act to regulate climate change under the Clean Air Act as either an attempt to force the Senate to act or to circumvent the gridlock on the controversial issue. A foreshadowing of this occurred this week, when Senate Democratic leaders refused consideration of an amendment by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) that would have restricted the EPA's ability to regulate carbon emissions for the next fiscal year. Murkowski said the amendment would allow the Senate time to work out a compromise on cap and trade without the pressure of federal regulation. Democratic leaders said the appropriations bill which Murkowski sought to amend was not an appropriate vehicle for the measure.

This week the House passed a continuing resolution (CR), a stop-gap measure to keep the federal government funded while Congress completes the appropriations process for the next fiscal year. Included in the CR was language passed last week by the House (H.R. 22) that would provide short-term cash relief to the U.S. Postal Service. The provision would relieve for one year the USPS requirement that it pre-fund retiree health benefits. The $5.4 billion payment is due by September 30, 2009. The measure contained in the CR would require only a $1.4 billion payment, freeing up $4 billion to ensure USPS solvency. The Senate is expected to take up the CR next week so that it will meet the end of the fiscal year deadline. Printing Industries advocated passage of short-term relief, but continues to inform lawmakers that a longer-term fix is needed to allow the USPS to continue modernizing its operations.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have published guidance for employers regarding H1N1 Flu. There is online guidance. Click here to view the new CDC/DHS guidance for employers of all sizes and click here to view the Small Business Preparedness Guide.

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has assumed the late Sen. Ted Kennedy's (D-MA) role as Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee. Harkin, a vocal advocate of the Employee Free Choice Act, announced he will make passage of EFCA or a modified version of it a top priority of his chairmanship.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick named former DNCC Chairman and close Kennedy family friend Paul Kirk to fill Sen. Ted Kennedy's senate seat until January's special election on January 19, 2010. Kirk is expected to be sworn in on Friday afternoon, and will ensure the majority party's 60 seat super-majority.

The heated August health care focus seemed to benefit the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) as it competes with its counterpart, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), to raise campaign dollars to fund challengers and defend incumbent candidates in next year's mid-term election. Final monthly numbers show that the NRSC raised $3.08 million; the DSCC raised $2.2 million.