December 19, 2011 In this MegaVote for Hawaii's 1st & 2nd Congressional Districts: Recent Congressional Votes Senate: Balanced Budget Amendment Senate: Balanced Budget Amendment Senate: Defense Authorization, FY2012 Senate: Reid-McConnell Amdt.; Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 Senate: Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2012 Senate: Military Construction-VA Appropriations, FY2012 House: Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 House: Iran Sanctions House: Defense Authorization, FY2012 House: Intelligence Authorization, FY2012 House: Military Construction-VA Appropriations, FY2012 House: Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2012 Upcoming Congressional Bills House: Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011

Recent Senate Votes

Balanced Budget Amendment - Vote Rejected (21-79) The Senate rejected the Democratic balanced-budget amendment that would have taken Social Security off the books and prohibited Congress from cutting taxes for millionaires if the cut increased the deficit. A two-thirds majority is needed in both chambers to send constitutional amendments to the states for ratification. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Balanced Budget Amendment - Vote Rejected (47-53) The Senate rejected the Republican balanced-budget amendment proposal that would have required a two-thirds majority in both chambers to increase taxes and limited federal spending to 18 percent of the country’s economic output. The August debt limit law required both chambers to consider balanced-budget amendments before the end of the year. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Defense Authorization, FY2012 - Vote Agreed to (86-13, 1 Not Voting) The Senate cleared this $662 billion measure for the president that authorizes defense policies for the current fiscal year. The House passed the bill the previous day. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Reid-McConnell Amdt.; Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 - Vote Agreed to (89-10, 1 Not Voting) The Senate approved this amendment to H.R.3630 that replaces the House bill with the Senate’s compromise bill. The amended bill would extend by 2 months the Social Security payroll tax cut and benefits for the long-term unemployed. The deal also includes a provision directing the White House to expedite the decision on the construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline. The bill subsequently passed by unanimous consent. It is unclear as of press time if the House will pass the Senate bill. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2012 - Vote Passed (72-27, 1 Not Voting) The Senate cleared this bill to provide $8.6 billion in disaster relief and to combat Social Security fraud, sending it to the president for his signature. The House passed this bill the previous day. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Military Construction-VA Appropriations, FY2012 - Vote Agreed to (67-32, 1 Not Voting) The Senate gave final approval to the conference report for this $915 billion "megabus" spending bill that provides funds for the rest of the fiscal year for the remaining nine annual appropriations bills. The nine bills are the Military Construction-VA, Defense, Energy-Water, Financial Services, Homeland Security, Interior-Environment, Labor-HHS-Education, Legislative Branch and State-Foreign Operations appropriations bills. The House passed the bill the previous day. The president is expected to sign the bill. Sen. Daniel Inouye voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Daniel Akaka voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Recent House Votes

Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 - Vote Passed (234-193, 6 Not Voting) The House passed this Republican version of the payroll tax extension bill. The bill would extend the Social Security payroll tax cut for one year, prevent Medicare payments to doctors from being cut more than 27 percent, and overhaul the unemployment benefits program. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) called the bill "dead on arrival" in the Senate. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted NO......send e-mail or see bio Iran Sanctions - Vote Passed (410-11, 12 Not Voting) The House voted to strengthen sanctions against Iran that are intended to deny the regime resources to develop nuclear weapons. The Senate is unlikely to pass the bill. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Defense Authorization, FY2012 - Vote Passed (283-136, 14 Not Voting) The House passed this $662 billion measure that authorizes defense policies for the current fiscal year. The Senate cleared the measure for the president the next day. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Intelligence Authorization, FY2012 - Vote Passed (396-23, 14 Not Voting) The House gave final approval to this bill authorizing funds for 16 intelligence agencies for the current fiscal year. The amount is classified, but it is estimated to be around $78.6 billion. The Senate passed the bill on December 14 by unanimous consent. The president is expected to sign it. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Military Construction-VA Appropriations, FY2012 - Vote Passed (296-121, 16 Not Voting) The House passed the conference report for this $915 billion "megabus" spending bill that provides funds for the rest of the fiscal year for the remaining nine annual appropriations bills. The nine bills are the Military Construction-VA, Defense, Energy-Water, Financial Services, Homeland Security, Interior-Environment, Labor-HHS-Education, Legislative Branch and State-Foreign Operations appropriations bills. The Senate gave final approval to the bill the next day. The president is expected to sign it into law. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2012 - Vote Passed (351-67, 15 Not Voting) The House passed this $8.6 billion bill to provide additional disaster relief funds to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers and to combat Social Security waste. The Senate passed the bill the next day, sending it to the President. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Rep. Mazie Hirono voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Upcoming Votes

Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 - H.R.3630 The House is scheduled to vote Monday night on the Senate version of the payroll tax extension bill.