Congress Returns and Faces Year-End Push. The U.S. Congress returned this week from its Thanksgiving break and is currently scheduled for a three-week legislative session leading up to the end of the calendar year. While the latest government shutdown crisis has been temporarily averted—again—Congress has a lot on its plate and a short amount of time with which to work. Addressing aid for Israel and Ukraine, passage of the fiscal year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration, and military promotions are all items included on the to-do list. Legislators likely want to make progress on those appropriations bills, as well, because those pushed-back funding “double deadlines” of January 19, 2024, and February 2, 2024 (agencies such as the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be funded through the latter date) will arrive very quickly when the calendar flips to 2024.
House Committee Challenges Overtime Proposal. On November 29, 2023, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Workforce Protections held a hearing entitled, “Bad for Business: DOL’s Proposed Overtime Rule.” As the title implies, the purpose of the hearing was to examine the proposed overtime rule and ramp up political pressure against its finalization. One witness, an independent hotelier, noted that the rule would likely force...
KEY EVENTS FIMI narratives downplayed Russia’s unease over Ukrainian drone strikes Victory Day served as a pretext to refresh ‘Nazi Ukraine’ claims Pro-Kremlin outlets sought to deflect attention...