WASHINGTON — Here’s a look at how area members of Congress voted over the previous week.
There were no key votes in the House last week.
SENATE
FINANCIAL MARKETS: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Joshua Frost to serve as the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for financial markets. Frost has been an official at the Federal Reserve’s New York bank since 1999, with responsibilities including oversight of money markets and Treasury debt markets. An opponent, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said: “I will vote against his nomination out of growing concerns that the Treasury Department has been derelict in its responsibilities to the Senate Finance Committee and its members.” The vote, on May 3, was 54 yeas to 42 nays.
YEAS
Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Patty Murray, D-Wash.
MANAGING HUD BUREAUCRACY: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Elizabeth Bhargava to be assistant secretary of administration at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Bhargava, most recently New York’s deputy secretary for Labor & Workforce, has been a New York state and city government official for over 20 years. A supporter, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Bhargava “recognizes that the program continuity depends on strong leadership at the top and meeting the department’s urgent staffing needs.” The vote, on May 3, was 62 yeas to 34 nays.
YEAS
Cantwell, Murray
HEAD START MASKING RULE: The Senate has passed a resolution (S.J. Res. 39) sponsored by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., that would disapprove of and void a Health and Human Services Department rule requiring face masks to be worn indoors and outdoors by children and workers in Head Start programs, and requiring Head Start workers to have received COVID vaccination. Thune said: “The scientific evidence for masking toddlers is shaky at best. The World Health Organization does not recommend masking for children under 5. The concerns about the effect on speech and children’s development are real.” A resolution opponent, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said: “Once our youngest children can get fully vaccinated, it probably makes sense to revisit some of these requirements, but we are not there yet.” The vote, on May 3, was 55 yeas to 41 nays.