WASHINGTON _ Congress will have plenty to do when it returns in September after seven weeks away. Here are five issues to watch before members leave Washington in October to campaign:
ZIKA FUNDING
Increasing concerns about the Zika virus after transmissions from mosquitoes in Florida prompted a few lawmakers to call on Congress to return to Washington early to address funding to combat the virus. But that looks unlikely as the standoff over funding continues. Senators will once again consider the package when they return after Labor Day. In June, the House adopted a conference report on Zika that would allocate $1.1 billion, but it includes language Democrats find objectionable.
Before the summer recess, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky set up another procedural vote for September. Democrats have twice blocked the package. They cited a breakdown in negotiations because of Republican divisions, and oppose provisions in the package relating to spending cut offsets, the availability of birth control, and insecticide spraying near water sources. With no one backing down, the vote could fail again.
House Republicans seem even less willing to budge. Speaker Paul D. Ryan said before the recess that Democrats "need to drop politics" and adopt the conference report.
APPROPRIATIONS/CONTINUING RESOLUTION
The most pressing issue Congress will face this fall is how to fund the government beyond the end of the fiscal year, Sept. 30. Since the House has passed only 5 appropriations bills and the Senate has passed only 3 of 12, members do not have time to complete the appropriations process. Ryan and McConnell have said they'll continue to pass as many bills as possible, while acknowledging that a temporary continuing resolution will probably be necessary to keep the government running.
The debate among House Republicans is whether such a resolution should last through December, while President Barack Obama is still in office, or through March, when there will be a new president. "Trying to get something done with this president is not likely to have a preferential outcome," House Republican Study Committee Chairman Bill Flores said.
Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., an appropriations subcommittee chairman, is in favor of finishing the appropriations process by year-end, regardless of which party prevails in November. He also argued that Republicans have a strong hand now with control of the House and the Senate and that it's unknown how the elections will affect that.
Republicans say they will continue to work on passing individual appropriations bills as a foundation for negotiating a larger appropriations measure later this year or next. That could include a new vote on an energy and water spending bill that failed in May, Flores said. Senate Democrats blocked a defense spending bill in July, and McConnell has scheduled another procedural vote for when they return.
GUN CONTROL
Expect House Democrats to keep fighting for votes to keep people on terrorist watch lists from buying guns and to expand background checks. Although it's unlikely they will succeed, previous Democratic floor protests have delayed legislative business .
Even a Republican-backed bill lacked the support to pass, so leadership indefinitely delayed a vote on the measure. It's unclear whether Republicans will reintroduce their bill in September or simply ignore the issue.
The Senate is not likely to take up any gun control measures, having rejected four bills in June.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Ryan said last month that the House will take up in September legislation to overhaul the criminal justice system.. He said the Judiciary Committee has already approved four bills and is hoping to mark up two more as part of the package that would come to the floor.
However, the package could be larger. The Judiciary Committee has approved 11 bills to change criminal sentencing requirements, the prison and re-entry system and federal criminal procedures.
The Senate has been working separately on a bipartisan criminal justice measure, but it's unlikely to make it to the floor this Congress, Senate Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin said. "I just can't get any signal from McConnell that he'll call it. ... I think he's afraid of it," he said.
INTERNAL REVENUE COMMISSIONER IMPEACHMENT
On the last day of the July session, House Freedom Caucus members attempted to force a vote to impeach Internal Revenue Commissioner John Koskinen. Leadership had two legislative days to schedule a vote on the matter. Those two days expired last month.
Freedom Caucus members said in July they were likely offer the resolution again when they return.
Ryan said the House Republican Conference would discuss the matter issue in September since many members are not familiar with it.
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(Rema Rahman and Niels Lesniewski contributed to this report.)
