AIRules Committee sets floor terms for NDAA, energy, and securities bills

House Rules and Floor ProcedureHouse Rules · 2025-12-09 · 119th Congress
The House Rules Committee met on December 9, 2025 to set the floor debate rules for five bills: the PERMIT Act (H.R. Begins at 0:04:45
Transcript
Highlights

Title

Rules Committee sets floor terms for NDAA, energy, and securities bills

Purpose

The House Rules Committee met on December 9, 2025 to set the floor debate rules for five bills: the PERMIT Act (H.R. 3898), the Electric Supply Chain Act (H.R. 3638), the State Planning for Reliability and Affordability Act (H.R. 3628), the INVEST Act (H.R. 3383), the Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews Act (H.R. 3668), and S. 1071, the vehicle carrying the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. Witnesses included the House Armed Services Committee's chairman and ranking member on the NDAA, members and witnesses on the energy bills, and witnesses for and against the INVEST Act's securities-law changes, while Democrats used the session to press for extending expiring ACA premium tax credits and to challenge provisions dropped from the NDAA. Begins at0:04:45.

Who spoke

The Chair (presiding)0:04:45: Gaveled in the meeting and summarized the purpose of each of the five bills, including the PERMIT Act's proposed reforms to acquisition and permitting processes0:04:45 and S. 1071's pay raise and NDAA provisions0:08:37; managed recognition and roll-call votes throughout2:32:11.

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Ranking Member0:09:32: Argued the bills have "big, important sounding" titles but do little while Congress is weeks from a possible government shutdown and rising health premiums0:10:25; criticized the NDAA for authorizing roughly $8 billion above the president's request for the Pentagon without a completed audit0:11:33; later moved to make in order a rule extending enhanced ACA premium tax credits through 2028, warning nearly 20 million Americans rely on ACA coverage2:35:55, a motion defeated on a roll-call vote2:37:44.

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), House Armed Services Committee Chairman0:13:57: Presented S. 1071 as the product of bipartisan, bicameral work with Ranking Member Smith0:14:15; touted a service-member pay raise and new housing, child care, and school funding0:15:05, and said the bill counters China0:15:23.

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member0:15:36: Praised the bipartisan process while noting some provisions "came out the way it is" due to leadership decisions0:15:49; cited inclusion of counter-UAS and oversight provisions0:17:25; under later questioning, defended strikes on alleged drug-trafficking vessels as an extension of post-9/11 authority while warning against a "forever war" absent congressional oversight0:39:000:40:59, and noted the administration has pardoned people convicted of drug trafficking even as such strikes continue0:40:590:41:53.

Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN)0:19:40: Questioned the witnesses about congressional oversight of the Pentagon and quality-of-life provisions for service members0:20:23.

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO)0:30:01: Asked Rogers why a provision he called the "Rosendale language" was stripped from the bill0:30:01; said he would vote no on the rule because the NDAA contains language he believes could subject U.S. citizens to indefinite detention0:31:05.

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA)0:32:24: Said he was disappointed that expanded IVF/fertility coverage for service members did not make the final NDAA despite his advocacy0:33:570:35:10; later introduced an amendment, offered on behalf of Rep. Jacobs, to extend fertility services including IVF to active-duty dependents2:32:38, which was rejected on a roll-call vote2:34:56.

Rep. Scott (Rules Committee member)0:26:26: Raised concern that when identical language passes both the House and Senate but is later stripped by leadership, it sets a troubling precedent for the legislative process0:26:48; was later designated to manage the reported rule on the floor for Democrats2:43:03.

Rep. Leger Fernández0:44:51: Pressed Rogers on why the NDAA authorizes roughly $8 billion above the president's budget request and asked where the final topline would be set in appropriations0:45:21; in the later PERMIT Act discussion, argued the bill would gut Clean Water Act protections important to New Mexico communities and offered an alternative referencing colleague Melanie Stansbury's prior legislation2:19:192:20:33.

Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL), witness0:59:01: Testified that Florida Power & Light customers will pay over $500 more annually than in 20200:59:30, and recommended the committee not advance the three energy bills, calling H.R. 3668 a transfer of state clean-water authority to FERC1:01:35.

Rep. Gabe Evans (R-CO), witness0:49:37: Testified in support of H.R. 3628, describing a provision requiring state utility regulators to consider reliable, dispatchable generation such as nuclear, coal, and hydropower0:56:27; defended the bill under questioning as requiring only that regulators "consider" the standard, not mandate adoption1:21:02.

A Rules Committee Democrat questioning Evans1:09:35: Pressed Evans on whether the "Electric Supply Chain Act" would direct a Department of Energy office that had itself been eliminated to conduct the required study1:11:23, and noted the committee has produced numerous "study bills" without decisive action1:15:55.

Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH), witness1:53:34: Argued permitting delays and unreliable, mandate-driven grids in states like New York are driving up energy costs1:52:44; said rising manufacturing and data-center demand require more generation capacity, not less1:54:18.

A committee member (Mr. Mendez)1:31:54: Questioned witnesses on which forms of electricity generation are cheapest, citing conservation and battery storage, and linked fossil-fuel price spikes to the Russian invasion of Ukraine's effect on LNG markets1:33:19.

A witness supporting the INVEST Act1:58:07: Testified that IPOs have declined roughly 50% in recent decades while private markets have grown, and argued the bill's reforms would expand accredited-investor access and capital formation outside major coastal cities1:58:482:01:03.

A witness opposing the INVEST Act2:04:26: Argued the bill is "paid for" by exposing seniors and retirement savers to higher-risk, less-transparent private assets and unregistered investment products2:05:132:08:58, citing opposition from AARP and labor and consumer groups2:09:51.

An attorney witness on the PERMIT Act2:14:28: Described defending a client for two weeks at trial against Army Corps of Engineers Clean Water Act enforcement over a private irrigation ditch, facing a nearly $65 million penalty claim before prevailing2:15:312:16:23; argued current penalty structure — up to $500/day per violation as of a 2014 adjustment — enables "bone-crushing" settlements regardless of guilt2:15:072:17:19.

Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-OH)2:39:57: Moved to make in order an amendment to H.R. 3898 concerning water/crop protections, arguing the underlying bill guts Clean Water Act protections2:40:262:41:18, a motion that was rejected on a roll-call vote2:42:34.

Key moments

McGovern opened by noting Congress is "weeks away" from a possible government shutdown while the Rules Committee takes up bills with "big, important sounding" titles that he said accomplish little0:10:25.

Neguse said he would vote against the NDAA rule because he believes the bill's detention-related language could apply to U.S. citizens, calling it a fundamental change affecting constitutional protections0:31:050:32:03.

Under questioning, Smith defended strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats as a legal extension of the 2001 authorization but warned the administration is claiming authority to act as "jury and executioner" over narcotics traffickers without adequate oversight0:39:300:40:59.

A member pointed out that President Trump had pardoned more than 100 people convicted of drug crimes, including one case involving roughly $100 million in trafficked drugs, calling it inconsistent with strikes justified as anti-trafficking action0:41:340:41:53.

Griffith said Congress could have "fought a little harder" for IVF/fertility coverage for service members in the final NDAA, a provision he said was left out by leadership decision rather than through a fight between him and Smith0:35:330:35:49.

Castor testified that a proposed rate hike would push Florida Power & Light bills up more than $500 a year compared to 2020, and said the three energy bills before the committee would not lower costs0:59:301:01:10.

A member pressed Evans on whether the Electric Supply Chain Act would task a Department of Energy office that no longer exists with conducting the required supply-chain study, which Evans did not directly dispute1:10:511:12:37.

Griffith's amendment (offered for Rep. Jacobs) to add IVF coverage for active-duty dependents to S. 1071 failed on a roll-call vote2:32:592:34:56, as did a separate amendment restoring collective-bargaining protections for DoD civilian employees2:34:032:35:28.

McGovern's motion to make in order a rule extending enhanced ACA premium tax credits through 2028 — which he said affects roughly 20 million ACA enrollees — was defeated on a roll-call vote2:35:552:37:44.

The committee ultimately voted to report the rule covering all five bills, with Rep. Scott designated to manage the rule on the House floor for Democrats2:43:03.

Metadata

Official titleH.R. 3898 – PERMIT Act; H.R. 3638 – Electric Supply Chain Act; H.R. 3628 – State Planning for Reliability & Affordability Act; H.R. 3383 – Increasing Investor Opportunities Act [INVEST Act]; H.R. 3668 – Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews; S. 1071 – To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to disinter the remains of Fernando V. Cota from Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, Texas, and for other purposes. [National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026]
CommitteeHouse Rules
Chamber / CongressHouse · 119th Congress
Date2025-12-09
TypeMeeting
Witnesses
(none listed in event metadata)
Videoyoutube
Transcript359 caption blocks · 13,129 words · 2:43:29 runtime
EventCongress.gov 117816