While in Washington earlier this month, Business Council of Alabama leadership had the opportunity to meet with House Speaker John Boehner in his Capitol office and discuss issues of importance to Alabama's business community, including the Marketplace Fairness Act. Pictured from left to right are: BCA Chief of Staff Mark Colson; BCA First Vice-Chairman Marty Abroms, president of Abroms & Associates PC, Florence; BCA Chairman Fred McCallum, President of AT&T Alabama, Birmingham; Speaker Boehner; BCA 2013 Chairman Carl Jamison, partner in JamisonMoneyFarmer PC, Tuscaloosa; Manufacturing Advocacy Council Co-Chair and NAM Board Member Ronnie Boles, owner of General & Automotive Machine Shop, Huntsville; BCA President and CEO William J. Canary; BCA Vice President for Communications, Strategic Information and Federal Affairs Nancy Hewston; and Tommy Lee, BCA Second Vice-Chairman, CEO Vulcan Inc., Foley.

House Sends new federal spending bill to Senate   

Federal Times (Reilly 1/15) "The House approved a fiscal 2014 spending package on Jan. 15 by a 359-67 margin, sending the bill to the Senate for a vote on final passage. The almost 1,600-page bill would end the threat of another partial government shutdown until the end of September, while setting agency funding levels for the year and extending a 1 percent pay raise to more than 200,000 blue-collar wage grade employees. If the measure passes the Senate as expected, President Obama will sign it, the White House has indicated. 

"The measure also averts a $20 billion cut for the Defense Department to leave the base budget for the government's largest agency at $480 billion. But that amount is still $31 billion, or almost 6 percent, below the Pentagon's original request for 2014, consultant Jim McAleese noted in an analysis. 

"During the debate preceding the bill's passage, lawmakers on both sides acknowledged that the measure could be better, but also lauded their ability to reach a deal after three years in which they were prone to resort to crisis-driven continuing resolutions. 'This bill's not perfect, I hate to tell you, but it's a good one', said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky. 

"Some Democrats were more critical, but nonetheless voted in favor. 'The best that can be said about it is that it begins to chip away at sequestration', Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said. 'The numbers are still awful, but the alternative is worse'."

Speaker Boehner promises Obamacare replacement    

The Hill (Berman 1/16) "Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday predicted that House Republicans would unveil - and possibly vote on - a plan to replace the healthcare law in 2014, fulfilling a long-delayed promise to voters. An alternative to ObamaCare will be 'one of the big issues' the House GOP will discuss at its annual policy retreat at the end of the month, Boehner said. 

"While the party has repeatedly run on a pledge to 'repeal and replace' President Obama's signature law, GOP lawmakers have never coalesced around a single alternative. Boehner is now facing mounting pressure from conservatives who say the party cannot continue to merely denounce the unpopular ObamaCare as a means of winning elections. 'It's one of the big issues for conversation in terms of our agenda for this year, and I think you'll see Republicans come forward with a plan to replace ObamaCare', Boehner said Thursday, 'a plan that will actually reduce costs for the American people and make health insurance more accessible'. 

"The Speaker signaled he agrees with members who are arguing that the party must run on a robust agenda, but party leaders are waiting until the retreat to decide exactly how aggressive to be in an election year. Party leaders favor a politically safer approach in which the GOP would draft principles on a range of issues, including healthcare, tax reform and immigration, but may not actually hold votes that could be targeted in campaigns. In meetings in the Capitol on Wednesday, conservatives resolved to push the leadership to commit to an ambitious agenda that would include floor votes on a healthcare replacement, tax reform and other issues."