Committee

• The House Ways and Means Committee unanimously approved five bipartisan bills on March 25, 2026, providing tax relief to natural disaster victims, sexual assault survivors, and pre-school teachers while enhancing IRS customer service and whistleblower protections. • Key measures include the Doug LaMalfa Federal Disaster Tax Relief Certainty Act (H.R. 5366, passed 41-0) and the Supporting Early-childhood Educators’ Deductions Act (SEED Act, H.R. 5334, passed 43-0), allowing up to $350 annual deductions for classroom expenses for standard deduction filers. • The IRS Whistleblower Program Improvement Act (H.R. 7959) strengthens protections for tax fraud informants; all bills received strong bipartisan support amid ongoing tax proposal discussions.

• The House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee held a hearing on March 18, 2026, focusing on healthcare providers amid ongoing policy debates. • Reported on March 25, the session examined provider challenges, potentially influencing upcoming health legislation in the US Congress. • This follows recent hearings on Medicare fraud, highlighting congressional scrutiny of healthcare delivery and costs.

• The House of Representatives returns Tuesday, March 24, 2026, with the Rules Committee preparing floor votes on bills addressing safety in Washington, D.C., Department of Homeland Security funding, and vessel security. • Speaker Johnson has no plans to bring a clean extension of FISA Section 702 to the floor this week, as the surveillance provision faces expiration in mid-April. • These votes occur amid ongoing bipartisan efforts in the House Financial Services Committee to initiate bicameral conference negotiations on differing housing bills between chambers.

Every PM hopes to emerge having said nothing that makes the news, and with Iran centre-stage Keir played a blinderWhat a difference a week makes. At last week’s prime minister’s questions, Keir Starmer tried to persuade us that he knew less than he did. His memory was so bad that he could barely remember who Peter Mandelson was, let alone why he had appointed him as ambassador to the US. Fast forward to Monday’s appearance before the liaison committee, the supergroup of select committee chairs, and Keir was desperate to convince us he knew more than he did. He had the inside track on Iran. He was in control. He also wasn’t altogether convincing.Mind you, it’s hard not to feel some sympathy with Starmer. The whole point of being prime minister is that you’re expected to know more than the rest of us. And most of the time you do. State secrets are your life blood. Only just occasionally the veil slips. Having threatened to obliterate Tehran’s power plants just days earlier, on Monday morning Donald Trump announced on Truth Social – along with a strange witch reference – that he was going to delay the bombardment for five days as constructive talks with the Iranian regime were taking place. Continue reading...

• The House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection held a hearing last week assessing national security threats from PRC-linked AI, robotics, and autonomous sensing technologies entering US markets. • Witnesses highlighted companies like DeepSeek and Unitree Robotics, urging investments in US alternatives to protect critical infrastructure and supply chains. • Subcommittee Chair emphasized: 'Invest in trusted American alternatives, strengthen cybersecurity practices, and prevent federal funds from supporting platforms that put American data at risk.'

• On March 21, 2026, Subcommittee Chairman August Pfluger (R-TX) requested a GAO review of threats from violent extremists using AI technologies against the US. • The letter warns that malicious actors, including cyber threats and insiders, exploit generative AI for terrorist tactics like recruitment and attacks. • Pfluger emphasizes the challenges in detecting and deterring these evolving national security risks, citing prior hearings on foreign terrorist use of emerging tech.

• Lawmakers reviewed 27 bills on March 18, 2026, in the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee to update VA health care, accountability, education, and workforce programs, many unchanged for 30 years. • Proposals include 12 Republican-led and 15 Democrat-led bills expanding dental coverage, VA mental health for incarcerated veterans with PTSD, and aligning drug formularies with industry standards. • Chairman Bost stressed reauthorization as a tool to fix underperforming programs; bills also update leasing, contracts, and protect 30% veteran VA staff from layoffs via Rep. Tim Kennedy's act.