Bills Introduced – 01-25-17

Yesterday with the Senate in full session and the House minimally present in a pro forma session there were 25 bills introduced. Of those only three may be of specific interest to readers of this blog:

HR 4877 Making appropriations for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2018, and for other purposes. Rep. Granger, Kay [R-TX-12]

HR 4881 To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a task force for meeting the connectivity and technology needs of precision agriculture in the United States. Rep. Latta, Robert E. [R-OH-5] 

S 2343 A bill to require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a task force for meeting the connectivity and technology needs of precision agriculture in the United States. Sen. Wicker, Roger F. [R-MS]

HR 4877 appears to be an attempt to get the DOD out of the continuing resolution cycle for this fiscal year. The House passed a bipartisan DOD appropriations bill (HR 1301) last March, but it was never taken up by the Senate. According to at least one news report, this bill is also unlikely to be taken up in the Senate. The official text of this bill is available, but I have not had a chance to review it yet.

HR 4881 and S 2343 appear to be companion bills. I will be watching to see if these bills address cybersecurity issues associated with this technology; I am not holding my breath.