Oversight and Investigations Informer – February 8, 2022

What We Are Watching:

CLIMATE INVESTIGATION DELAYED: The House Oversight Committee has delayed its grilling of major oil companies’ board members after learning the requested witnesses weren’t available for tomorrow’s hearing. Committee Democrats want to press the so-called boardroom “activists” on whether the companies’ net-zero plans are sufficiently ambitious. The four targeted companies have all committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050, a timeline that mirrors the U.S. government’s. The investigation comes as Europe labeled some natural gas projects as “sustainable” and an “important step in the transition to a climate-neutral economy.”

TVA HIGHLIGHTS DECARBONIZATION: After pointed questioning from Congress last month, the Tennessee Valley Authority – the country’s largest public utility – highlighted its climate progress and ambitions to do even more. TVA plans to cut carbon emissions 80% from 2005 levels by 2035 and has already cut emissions 63%. TVA’s CEO indicated plans to expand upon the agency’s 60% emissions-free power generation in the coming years, including adding 24 times more solar power generation by 2035.

Week Ahead:

• The Bipartisan Policy Center holds a panel discussion titled “Investment vs Divestment: The Role of the Oil & Gas Industry in a Net-Zero Future” at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 9.

Key Insights:

BANKS ACCUSED OF CLIMATE HYPOCRISY: A United Nations-backed group is calling banks out for pledging net-zero emissions targets while still financing new fossil fuel projects. The Science Based Targets initiative is contemplating a deadline to stop fossil fuel financing and a prohibition on carbon offsets, or else the banks lose the group’s coveted stamp of approval. The Securities and Exchange Commission has opened a probe looking at the same disconnect in banks’ words and actions. With the financial community increasingly embracing its role in addressing climate change, it’s possible fossil fuel producers will find themselves with limited access to funds.

What We Are Watching: 

RASKIN NOMINATION: Sarah Bloom Raskin, a former Federal Reserve and Treasury official, testified in front of the Senate Banking Committee at her nomination hearing to become Vice Chair of Supervision at the Fed. Raskin is facing Republican backlash over her previous comments on changing the financial industry’s reliance on fossil fuels investments. In response, Raskin insisted that she believes it is not the Fed’s job to distribute funds to specific industries.

Week Ahead:   

The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection will convene one hearing this week:

• A hybrid hearing titled, “The Role that Community Development Financial Institutions and Minority Depository Institutions Serve in Supporting Communities” on Wednesday, February 9.

The House Financial Services Committee will convene one hearing this week:

• A virtual hearing titled, “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: The President’s Working Group on Financial Markets’ Report on Stablecoins” on Tuesday, February 8.

The Senate Agriculture Committee will convene one hearing this week:

• A full committee hearing titled, “Examining Digital Assets: Risks, Regulation, and Innovation” on Wednesday, February 9. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman, Rostin Behnam, along with company executives, will testify.

Key Insights:  

Late January, the crypto industry expressed concerns regarding a provision in the COMPETES Act introduced by House Democrats which granted the Treasury Department increased authority over  tracking and freezing financial accounts. The crypto industry was able to work with the provision’s original author, Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), and successfully update the legislation. The new provision requires the Treasury to collect public comment as it implements the measure and narrows the financial crimes provision to expand the Treasury Department’s authority. The House passed the COMPETES Act with the amended provision and now the bill will be worked out with the Senate version. The final bill will likely look more like the Senate version, as it is bipartisan.

What We Are Watching: 

CMS RELEASES ADVANCE NOTICE FOR MEDICARE ADVANTAGE RATES: On Wednesday, February 2, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Calendar Year (CY) 2023 Advance Notice for Medicare Advantage Capitation Rates. CMS predicts a 4.75 percent year-to-year effective growth rate and a 7.98 percent increase in revenue.

BIPARTISAN COMMITTEE LEADERS REQUEST UPDATE ON TIMELINE FOR COMMITMENT LETTER FOR MEDICAL DEVICE USER FEE AMENDMENTS (MDUFA): Last Friday, January 28, House Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), as well as the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-WA) and Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC) wrote a letter to Acting Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Janet Woodcock requesting an update on the timeline for transmitting the commitment letter for MDUFAs for Fiscal Years 2023 through 2027. By law, the FDA is required to submit its final commitment letter to Congress on or before January 15, 2022. Committee leaders requested that the FDA and industry leaders brief them on their progress by February 9, 2022.

CHAIRMAN JAMES CLYBURN REQUESTS DOCUMENTATION RELATED TO THE POTENTIAL MONETIZATION OF COVID-19 MISINFORMATION: On Thursday, January 27, Chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis James Clyburn (D-SC) sent a letter to telehealth provider SpeakWithAnMD requesting its compliance with previous requests for documents and information regarding the company’s consultations and prescriptions for “unproven coronavirus treatments like hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin.”

Week Ahead:

• On Tuesday, February 8 at 10 a.m., the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing titled: “Protecting Youth Mental Health: Part I – An Advisory and Call to Action.” Witnesses will include the Honorable Vivek H. Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General.
• On Tuesday, February 8 at 10:30 a.m., the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled “ARPA-H: The Next Frontier of Biomedical Research.” The witness list is forthcoming.
• On Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at 10 a.m., the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing to consider the nominations of Robert Michael Gordon to be an Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Rebecca E. Jones Gaston to be the Commissioner on Children, Youth, and Families at HHS. Gordon formerly served under the Obama administration in the Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development He also oversaw the Administration for Children and Families and the Administration on Aging. Jones Gaston is currently the Director of the Oregon Department of Human Services, Child Welfare Division. Previously, she served as executive director of the Social Services Administration at the Maryland Department of Human Services.

Key Insights:

On Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) called on the Biden Administration to increase oversight of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, saying private insurers are being overpaid by way of the program’s direct contracting payment model. In her remarks at a Senate Finance Committee hearing, the Senator accused MA insurers of using Medicare rules “to squeeze more money out of Medicare and to drive up the costs for taxpayers.” She specifically called out the Direct Contracting Model, which seeks to dissuade providers from using fee-for-service (FFS) models by giving them capitated and partially capitated payments. Sen. Warren alleged that direct contracting entities pocket money not spent on patient care. Although it remains unclear whether the Biden Administration will heed Sen. Warren’s call for increased oversight, Medicare reform remains an integral piece of President Biden’s economic agenda.

What We Are Watching: 

AIRLINE TRADE GROUP SAYS IT WILL TAKE YEARS TO ADDRESS 5G RADIO INTERFERENCE: Nick Calio, President of Airlines for America, the trade association representing major American passenger and cargo carriers, told a House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee that it will take years to permanently address airplane interference caused by the rollout of 5G on the C-Band spectrum.  

SENATE EPW COMMITTEE WORKING ON PFAS LEGISLATION: InsideEPA reports that staffers on the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works are working to develop bipartisan legislation to address PFAS chemicals.  

Week Ahead:

• The House Transportation and Infrastructure – Subcommittee on Water Resources and the Environment – holds a hearing titled Proposals for a Water Resources Development Act of 2022: Stakeholder Priorities. Tuesday, February 8, 11:00 a.m.
• The Senate Commerce Committee- Subcommittee on Space and Science- holds a hearing titled “NASA Accountability and Oversight.” Wednesday, February 9, 2:30 p.m.

What We Are Watching:

A CONTINENT WITHOUT FACEBOOK?: In Meta’s annual report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company cautioned regulators that if new EU data transfer rules are adopted, the company will “probably” no longer be able to offer many of its “most significant products and services,” including Facebook and Instagram, in the EU.

SPOTIFY TO DIVERSIFY: In a letter sent to Spotify staff, CEO Daniel Ek said he strongly condemns Joe Rogan’s derogatory comments, but would keep Rogan on the platform to “elevate all types of creators,” as “more speech on more issues can be highly effective in improving the status quo and enhancing the conversation altogether.” Ek shared that he is committing to an incremental investment of $100 million for the licensing, development, and marketing of music and audio content from historically marginalized groups to elevate creators from underrepresented communities and a diversity of backgrounds.

HOUSE AND SENATE COMPETES (AGAIN): On Friday, the House approved a $350 billion initiative which is aimed at increasing federal support for scientific research and new technologies to boost U.S. competitiveness, following the passing of the $250 billion Senate version in June 2021. Both bills provide substantial incentives to bring advanced semiconductor manufacturing back to the U. S.

Week Ahead:  

• On February 8^th at 10 a.m., The House Science, Space and Technology Committee holds a hearing on “Data Challenges Impacting Human Trafficking Research and Development of Anti-Trafficking Technological Tools.”
• On February 8^th at 2 p.m., The Federal Communications Bar Association holds a virtual discussion, beginning at 2 p.m., on “An Introduction to Intersecting Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Vehicle Technologies and Regulation.”

Key Insights:

First reported by WIRED, US intelligence agencies are struggling to fight new enemies presented by the digital age, with bad actors leveraging technologies to threaten the U.S. from thousands of miles away. Technological breakthroughs are transforming the threat landscape, data volume and accessibility are revolutionizing intelligence gathering, leading national intelligence to work with private sector companies to combat online threats and harness commercial technological advances.

First reported by WIRED, US intelligence agencies are struggling to fight new enemies presented by the digital age, with bad actors leveraging technologies to threaten the U.S. from thousands of miles away. Technological breakthroughs are transforming the threat landscape, data volume and accessibility are revolutionizing intelligence gathering, leading national intelligence to work with private sector companies to combat online threats and harness commercial technological advances.