| | | | | |  | | By Caitlin Oprysko | Presented by Paid Leave for All | With Daniel Lippman PORTMAN CALLS FOR VOTE ON CRYPTO AMENDMENT: Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) said he was open to changes in a tax provision of the bipartisan infrastructure bill that has set off a lobbying battle between lawmakers and cryptocurrency advocates, backing a vote to revise the language. The language, which would establish reporting requirements on crypto transactions, sparked an outcry from the industry this week, with crypto lobbyists and several lawmakers calling the language overly broad. — The language was softened, but not to the satisfaction of the industry or of Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the Senate Finance chair; Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, a top GOP tax writer; and Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), who've offered an amendment to further narrow the definition of a "broker" under the law for tax reporting purposes. But Portman had defended the language until today, and the White House had also dismissed the industry's concerns. "I agree with Senators Wyden, Toomey, Lummis that we can do more to clarify the intent of the cryptocurrency provision & the Senate should vote on their amendment," he wrote in a tweet. | | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | — The reversal came after a coalition of more than 100 nonprofits, trade associations and crypto companies threw their support behind the amendment in a letter to Senate leadership on Wednesday. "As currently drafted, the recently announced Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill would jeopardize the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry's future in the United States," the groups, which included the Blockchain Association, Coinbase, Binance, Americans for Tax Reform and the Association for Digital Asset Markets, wrote. While the coalition conceded it still has "remaining questions about portions of the language, this amendment goes a long way to addressing some of the biggest concerns with the draft." — Andreessen Horowitz's Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Katie Haun and Chris Dixon , who operate a $2.2 billion crypto venture fund, also wrote to Senate leadership Wednesday to add their names to the chorus of industry voices backing the Wyden-Toomey-Lummis amendment, calling the infrastructure bill "too important to be left vulnerable to future legal challenges based on the text as currently written." They urged lawmakers to realize that the industry "is not a monolith," arguing that "smart regulation must reflect the nuance that different crypto uses will require different rules of the road." Good afternoon and welcome to PI , where it's been infrastructure week outside my window for a few weeks now. Get in touch: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko. | | | | A message from Paid Leave for All: Paid Leave for All is the national campaign of organizations fighting to win paid family and medical leave for all working people. Everyone should be able to take the time they need to care for themselves or a loved one without risking their job or paycheck. Now, Congress has the chance to pass paid leave, and support families and businesses. Join us. There's no time to lose. Visit PaidLeaveForAll.org. | | | SAD NEWS: Richard Trumka, the powerful labor leader who helmed the AFL-CIO for more than a decade, has died at 72, POLITICO's Rebecca Rainey and Tina Sfondeles report. Trumka is believed to have died of a heart attack. Trumka, as head of a federation whose unions represent more than 12 million workers, was an influential voice in Washington and a major ally of Democrats and President Joe Biden — especially as labor issues have become more prominent over the past year. — Speaking to reporters at the White House today, Biden called Trumka a "very close" friend who was "more than head of AFL-CIO." Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in remarks on the Senate floor that the labor movement had lost "a fierce warrior at a time when we needed him most." Trumka, he said, "had in his veins, in every atom of his body, the heart, the thoughts, the needs of the working people of America. He was them. Rich Trumka was the working people of America." HOTELS, GYMS KEEP UP THE PUSH FOR COVID AID: As the Senate prepares to wrap up debate on the bipartisan infrastructure bill as soon as tonight , the hospitality and fitness industries continue to press lawmakers to carve out some space in the forthcoming reconciliation bill for targeted pandemic relief. — Chip Rogers, president and chief executive of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, wrote to Senate Budget Chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and ranking member Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) today pleading for the panel's budget resolution to include the Save Hotel Jobs Act, which would provide grants for hotels to use on payroll and benefits including wages, leave, health care plan expenses, retirement and payroll taxes. — Rogers pointed to a recent survey that corporate travel is projected to remain at only 30 percent of 2019 levels through the end of the year, noting that business travel and events make up over half of the industry's revenues. "This lack of corporate travel would cost the hotel industry an estimated $60b in 2021, according to leading economists," he wrote, warning that "millions of jobs and thousands of businesses remain at risk if the hotel industry doesn't recover." — Meanwhile, a coalition of groups representing gyms and fitness studios announced today that 150 lawmakers had co-sponsored a relief bill that would assist their industry, "a huge milestone that reinforces our need for federal support," the Community Gyms Coalition and International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association said. "Gyms and fitness centers across the country are continuing to struggle because of the ongoing effects of COVID-19," the groups said in a statement. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), whose GYMS Act would create a $30 billion grant program for fitness studios, said in a statement that with a surge of new coronavirus infections "and some regions of the country reinstating precautions, the fitness industry's financial hole is only getting deeper." | | | | Be a Policy Pro. POLITICO Pro has a free policy resource center filled with our best practices on building relationships with state and federal representatives, demonstrating ROI, and influencing policy through digital storytelling. Read our free guides today . | | | | | CONFECTIONERS POACH McKEON FROM BROWNSTEIN: The National Confectioners Association has hired Brian McKeon, a top Democratic lobbyist at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck , as senior vice president of public policy. McKeon, an alum of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and former Sen. Barbara Boxer, told PI in an interview that he's excited to join a team that had been a longtime client at Brownstein. — McKeon added that he was drawn in by the trade group's priorities within the food sector, particularly with work about to begin on the next farm bill. NCA's issue set, he argued, poses "a unique challenge ... in the sense that a lot of times, the things that NCA is pushing for don't necessarily fall along the unnatural party lines all the time." He added that despite leaving Brownstein, "I will continue to be a client of the firm. So I'm not going too far away, as I've told all of my current bosses the last couple of days." PUTTING ASIDE THEIR DIFFERENCES: "The U.S. government is enlisting the help of tech companies, including Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Google, to bolster the country's critical infrastructure defenses against cyber threats after a string of high-profile attacks," The Wall Street Journal's Robert McMillan reports. — The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative "will initially focus on combating ransomware and cyberattacks on cloud-computing providers, said Jen Easterly , director of the agency, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security. Ultimately, she said, it aims to improve defense planning and information sharing between government and the private sector" at a time when numerous ransomware attacks have increasingly begun to disrupt everyday life whether in the meat aisle at the grocery store or the gas pump. — "The partnership with industry, Ms. Easterly said, would improve the country's response to widespread attacks such as last year's sophisticated hack of software maker SolarWinds Corp. The U.S. and cybersecurity researchers have said Russian hackers were able to parlay their attack into access to more than 100 company networks and some government systems, too. Russia and China have denied that they engage in hacking. Improving information sharing between government and companies will make it easier to spot and combat threats such as what happened with SolarWinds, Ms. Easterly said." | | | |   | | | | | | — Bo Bryant has joined the U.S. Cannabis Council as senior vice president of government relations. He previously served as director for government relations and strategic engagement at AmeriCorps and is a McDonald's alum. | | | Bennet Blumenthal Victory Fund 2022 (Sens. Michael Bennet, Richard Blumenthal) | | | Freedom's Action PAC (Super PAC)
UNITY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (PAC) | | New Lobbying Registrations | | Holland & Knight LLP: The Silvi Group Companies
Imperium Global Advisors: Industrial Defender, LLC
Imperium Global Advisors: Seeqc, Inc
Lsn Partners, LLC: Sharecare
Lsn Partners, LLC: Tidal Basin | | New Lobbying Terminations | | Michael Best Strategies LLC: Pacific Aviation | | | | A message from Paid Leave for All: Passing paid leave and other care policies would yield millions of jobs, billions in wages, and trillions in GDP.
This summer, Paid Leave for All is proud to lead a cross-country bus tour to rally our communities around a paid leave policy that benefits all working Americans—and the opportunity to finally pass this law.
Join us at a stop along our bus tour as we hear from Members of Congress, advocates, families, and local leaders as we make this the year for paid leave for all. Check out our tour schedule at PaidLeaveForAll.org and take action with us. Let's make history together. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment