NCISS News and Legislation

• October 20, 2015
• by Lobbyist & NCISS Legislative Committee
• Associations

In the month of September, Lobbyit continued to work on Department of Labor (DOL) provisions in FY 2016 funding legislation, tracked unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) regulations, and data broker, GPS locator, and gun legislation, and traveled to Las Vegas for NCISS's Mid-term Board meeting to brief the board on legislative and regulatory activity in Washington, DC.

In September, Congress returned to work from their long August recess to a full slate of legislative business. Primary among these measures is legislation funding the Federal Government for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016. As NCISS has previously related, we have several provisions of importance in such legislation, including limits on DOL's ability to implement and enforce several rules significantly impacting labor/management relations (ambush rule, micro unions, joint employer, etc.).

Throughout the preceding months, NCISS and Lobbyit worked collaboratively with several business community partners to ensure that such provisions were included in both the House and Senate versions of Labor Health and Human Services (LHHS) appropriations bills, and was extremely gratified by the strong votes in both chambers to include such limitations.

It soon became clear, however, that the much anticipated "return to regular order" for funding government on an annual basis (i.e. the consideration and passage of 13 discrete appropriations bill, under a general budget agreement) would collapse under the tight overall budget limits, and the unwillingness of Senate Democrats to allow such measures to come to the floor for a vote.

As such, the process began to find a way to pass legislation funding government past the end of FY2015 (September 30). As this report goes to press, it is expected that a clean continuing resolution (CR) (meaning one largely free of contentious policy riders) will pass by midnight Wednesday, funding government until December 11, 2015. In the interim period, Congress will then try to negotiate an overall funding agreement for FY2016, and put together an "omnibus" appropriations package.

NCISS's focus in now on including the DOL-related provisions in this end-of-year package. (As an aside, NCISS/Lobbyit expect that such an omnibus will be out of reach, with Congress instead passing another CR - one laden with additional policy riders. Regardless of the type of vehicle, NCISS/Lobbyit will be working on inclusion of our favored provisions in this eventual funding package.)

Subsequent to resolving the funding problem, Congress then has numerous bills it must turn to, including numerous reathorizations (Federal Aviation Administration, child nutrition programs, elementary and higher education, etc.), tax extenders, defense authorization, etc.

Consequently, even though we have met with the relevant committees and secured assurances that we are "safe", NCISS and Lobbyit are fairly confident that the bills with which we are most concerned (data broker, GPS, etc.) will not see action before the end of the year.

As we related during the Vegas meeting, however, this situation must be watched very closely. Just because floor action has ground to a halt doesn't mean that staff aren't busy doing their jobs and hacking out compromises on a vast number of bills. As such, we expect numerous pieces of legislation to appear suddenly on the suspension calendar in the House and the "hotline" in the Senate, which are effectively each chamber's method of getting legislation through very quickly and without an overall floor vote.

NCISS and Lobbyit don't expect our target legislation to come up in this process, however, and are confident that we have laid the necessary groundwork with the appropriate offices and individuals to protect our interests.

In other news, Lobbyit had the pleasure of seeing our friends at NCISS in Las Vegas at the mid-term board meeting. In addition to discussing the overview from Washington and the legislation and regulations we're working on, we were extremely pleased to discuss plans to reinvigorate the NCISS political action committee (PAC), including enhanced fundraising activity, and supporting targeted lawmakers who share our interests and perspective. As we move into another election cycle, especially one in a presidential year, we will be focusing on getting NCISS members involved, and assessing where our resources are best employed. We believe the NCISS PAC will be an especially valuable tool in conveying the importance of our issues to key Members of Congress.

Finally, NCISS encourages our members to visit our Advocacy Hub, where they will find a new letter supporting legislation (both House and Senate) overturning the recent National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision in Browning-Ferris, or where the NLRB reversed long-standing precedent separating the actions of franchisee/franchisor. Under the NLRB's recent decision, a corporate parent can be hel accountable for the activities of a distant franchisee, even though they exert no actual control over the actions of such a franchisee.

Legislation

S 177 -- Data Security and Breach Notification Act

Official Title: A bill to protect consumers by requiring reasonable security policies and procedures to protect data containing personal information, and to provide for nationwide notice in the event of a breach of security.

S 237 -- Geolocational Privacy and Surveillance Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to specify the circumstances in which a person may acquire geolocation information and for other purposes.

S 288 -- National Labor Relations Board Reform Act

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to reform the National Labor Relations Board, the Office of the General Counsel, and the process for appellate review, and for other purposes.

S 356 -- Electronic Communications Privacy Act Amendments Act

Official Title: A bill to improve the provisions relating to the privacy of electronic communications.

S 407 -- Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act

Official Title: A bill to regulate large capacity ammunition feeding devices.

S 498 -- Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act

Official Title: A bill to allow reciprocity for the carrying of certain concealed firearms.

S 512 -- The Law Enforcement Access to Data Stored Abroad Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to safeguard data stored abroad from improper government access, and for other purposes.

S 668 -- Data Broker Accountability and Transparency Act

Official Title: A bill to require data brokers to establish procedures to ensure the accuracy of collected personal information, and for other purposes.

S 740

Official Title: A bill to improve the coordination and use of geospatial data.

S 754 -- Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act

Official Title: An original bill to improve cybersecurity in the United States through enhanced sharing of information about cybersecurity threats, and for other purposes.

S 801

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to provide for appropriate designation of collective bargaining units.

S 1023

Official Title: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code to provide a refundable credit for costs associated with Information Sharing and Analysis Organizations.

S 1027 -- Data Breach Notification and Punishing Cyber Criminals Act

Official Title: A bill to require notification of information security breaches and to enhance penalties for cyber criminals, and for other purposes.

S 1123

Official Title: A bill to reform the authorities of the Federal Government to require the production of certain business records, conduct electronic surveillance, use pen registers and trap and trace devices, and use other forms of information gathering for foreign intelligence, counterterrorism, and criminal purposes, and for other purposes.

S 1158

Official Title: A bill to ensure the privacy and security of sensitive personal information, to prevent and mitigate identity theft, to provide notice of security breaches involving sensitive personal information, and to enhance law enforcement assistance and other protections against security breaches, fraudulent access, and misuse of personal information.

S 1520

Official Title: A bill to protect victims of stalking from violence.

S 1559 -- Pet and Women Safety Act

Official Title: A bill to protect victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and dating violence from emotional and psychological trauma caused by acts of violence or threats of violence against their pets.

S 1759 -- Phone Scam Prevention Act

Official Title: A bill to prevent caller ID spoofing, and for other purposes.

HR 47

Official Title: A bill to ensure secure gun storage and gun safety devices.

HR 491 -- Geolocational Privacy and Surveillance Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to specify the circumstances in which a person may acquire geolocation information and for other purposes.

HR 580 -- Data Accountability and Trust Act

Official Title: A bill to protect consumers by requiring reasonable security policies and procedures to protect data containing personal information, and to provide for nationwide notice in the event of a security breach.

HR 612 -- National Right-to-Work Act

Official Title: A bill to preserve and protect the free choice of individual employees to form, join, or assist labor organizations, or to refrain from such activities.

HR 656 -- Online Communications and Geolocation Protection Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to disclosures to governments by communications-related service providers of certain information consisting of or relating to communications, and for other purposes.

HR 689 -- Surveillance Order Reporting Act

Official Title: A bill to permit periodic public reporting by electronic communications providers and remote computer service providers of certain estimates pertaining to requests or demands by Federal agencies under the provisions of certain surveillance laws where disclosure of such estimates is, or may be, otherwise prohibited by law.

HR 699 -- Email Privacy Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to update the privacy protections for electronic communications information that is stored by third-party service providers in order to protect consumer privacy interests while meeting law enforcement needs, and for other purposes.

HR 719 -- TSA Office of Inspection Accountability Act

Official Title: A bill to require the Transportation Security Administration to conform to existing Federal law and regulations regarding criminal investigator positions, and for other purposes.

HR 752 -- Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act

Official Title: A bill to prohibit the transfer or possession of large capacity ammunition feeding devices, and for other purposes.

HR 791 -- Cell Phone Freedom Act

Official Title: A bill to prohibit the unauthorized remote shut down of a cellular phone.

HR 798 -- Responsible Skies Act

Official Title: A bill to amend the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 to prohibit the flying of unmanned recreational aircraft near commercial airports.

HR 827 -- Robo Calls Off Phones (Robo COP) Act

Official Title: A bill to direct the Federal Trade Commission to revise the regulations regarding the Do-not-call registry to prohibit politically-oriented recorded message telephone calls to telephone numbers listed on that registry.

HR 950 -- Prohibiting Automated Traffic Enforcement Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 23, United States Code, to prohibit automated traffic enforcement, and for other purposes.

HR 1385

Official Title: A bill to provide for a legal framework for the operation of public unmanned aircraft systems, and for other purposes.

HR 1431

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to prohibit the preemption of State stalking laws.

HR 1432

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to prohibit the preemption of State identity theft laws.

HR 1560 -- Protecting Cyber Networks Act

Official Title: A bill to improve cybersecurity in the United States through enhanced sharing of information about cybersecurity threats, and for other purposes.

HR 1646 -- Homeland Security Drone Assessment and Analysis Act

Official Title: A bill to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to research how small and medium sized unmanned aerial systems could be used in an attack, how to prevent or mitigate the effects of such an attack, and for other purposes.

HR 1704 -- Personal Data Notification and Protection Act

Official Title: A bill to establish a nation data breach notification standard, and for other purposes.

HR 1731 -- National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act

Official Title: A bill to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to enhance multi-directional sharing of information related to cybersecurity risks and strengthen privacy and civil liberties protections, and for other purposes.

HR 1746 -- Truth in Employment Act

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to protect employer rights.

HR 1766

Official Title: A bill to amend the Equal Credit Opportunity Act to repeal a small business loan data collection requirement.

HR 1767

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to require that lists of employees eligible to vote in organizing elections be provided to the National Labor Relations Board.

HR 1768

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act with respect to the timing of elections and pre-election hearings and the identification of pre-election issues.

HR 1770

Official Title: A bill to require certain entities who collect and maintain personal information of individuals to secure such information and to provide notice to such individuals in the case of a breach of security involving such information, and for other purposes.

HR 1893

Official Title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to modify the authority of the National Labor Relations Board with respect to rulemaking, issuance of complaints, and authority over unfair labor practices.

HR 1939 -- No Armed Drones (NADA) Act

Official Title: A bill to amend the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 to establish prohibitions to prevent the use of an unmanned aircraft system as a weapon while operating in the national airspace system, and for other purposes.

HR 2246

Official Title: A bill to amend chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, to update certain procedures applicable to commerce in firearms and remove certain Federal restrictions on interstate firearms transactions.

HR 2283

Official Title: A bill to require face to face purchases of ammunition, to require licensing of ammunition dealers, and to require reporting regarding bulk purchases of ammunition.

HR 2909 -- Protecting Firefighters and Promoting Innovation Act

Official Title: A bill to establish an interagency working group to study the use of unmanned aircraft systems for wildland firefighting, and for other purposes.

HR 3025 -- Wildfire Airspace Protection Act

Official Title: A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to provide a criminal penalty for launching drones that interfere with fighting wildfires affecting Federal property, and for other purposes.