Congress is currently on a five week recess.  Even though the House has not finished work on the budget or spending bills, we adjourned until after Labor Day. 

The usual fights between Democrats and Republicans are not what is driving the current stalemate in Congress.  Right now, fights within the Republican Party have erupted and threaten daily business.  Newer members affiliated with the Tea Party have caused trouble for their own leadership on many issues that were once seen as relatively tame.  For example, the transportation budget was pulled from the floor recently due to a lack of votes from the Republican Caucus.  A bi-partisan Farm Bill was pulled from the floor.  And they are in the majority and their chairmen wrote the bills!   There have also been threats to shut down the government over the budget and to kill the new health law. 

Where does Congress go from here?  I remain hopeful that agreements can be reached to work on pressing issues.  A few issues have passed this year despite the fact that this Congress has passed fewer bills than any session since the 1940s.  I believe that bi-partisan efforts are needed to find agreement on several big issues like the budget, the Farm Bill and the economy.  As I meet constituents across the district this month, I will listen to your ideas about how to get America moving forward. Please take a moment to read the latest news below and plea share your thoughts on issues important to you.

                                                                                        Around the District and in Washington  

Ft. McPherson Commissary

Unfortunately, the commissary at Ft. McPherson will be closed and a new one will not open at Dobbins AFB.  This is a change from what had been earlier promised and Congressman Scott strongly disagrees with the decision.  He opposed closing the commissary and helped extend the closing date by a couple of years.  The Congressman will support any efforts to find a solution for the thousands of veterans who live in metro Atlanta. Ft. McPherson will be turned over to a redevelopment authority in September. 

Student Loan Rates

A bipartisan agreement has been reached to address future student loan rates.  Under the plan, nearly 8.8 million undergraduate borrowers will see their rates on new loans drop from 6.8 to 3.86 percent, and about 1.5 million Graduate Unsubsidized Stafford borrowers will see their rates drop on new loans from 6.8 percent to 5.41 percent. And over 1 million GradPLUS and Parent PLUS borrowers will see their rates on new loans drop from 7.9 percent to 6.41 percent. To learn more about the rates and to comment, visit Congressman Scott's blog.

Health Fair

This Saturday, Congressman Scott will host his annual health fair.  Dozens of free health screenings will be available from a wide variety of Georgia health professionals.  The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will be on hand to answer questions about the new health law and representatives from the Veterans Administration will be available to answer questions about veterans health programs.  To learn more about the many services offered, click here.
WHEN: Saturday, August 17, 2013 - 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. 
WHERE: Mundy’s Mill High School  9652 Fayetteville Road (Hwy. 54), Jonesboro, GA 30238.

Open Enrollment for Health Insurance Exchanges

The Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) is a new program that simplifies the process of buying health insurance for small businesses.  The SHOP program launches on October 1 to give small businesses new ways to provide health coverage to their employees.  You can call the SHOP call center at 1-800-706-7893  Monday-Friday from 9am-5pm or use the online health care wizard for employers at: https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/.

Individuals, including the self-employed, can continue to call the Health Insurance Marketplace call center at 1-800-318-2596 or visit the online site at: https://www.healthcare.gov/families/. 
 
District Schedule
*partial list of public events; smaller constituent meetings not listed

On August 3, Congressman Scott spoke about urban agriculture with AgSouth at the Peachtree Farmers Market.  On August 5, Congressman Scott held a scholarship ceremony for area students. On August 6 he spoke to the Midtown Rotary Club and on August 8 he spoke to the South Cobb Rotary Club.  On August 17, Congressman Scott hosts his annual health fair.  On August 20, he tours a Coca-Cola facility in College Park.  On August 23 he is the commencement speaker at the Atlanta Jobs Corps Center.  On August 24, he speaks at an event in Austell with the Georgia Alzheimer's Association. On September 8, he brings the message at Kings Memorial UMC in Atlanta.  On September 15, he brings the message at Cornerstone Baptist Church in Fayetteville.
 
Recent Grant Awards

Georgia will benefit from $3.2 million in affordable housing funding from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta. AHP grants will assist in funding seven affordable housing projects in Georgia. The YWCA of Northwest Georgia Renovation Project, the Albany AME Bethel Housing Complex, and the Ashley House redevelopment and preservation project in Valdosta are a few of the housing developments that received awards. AHP funds will go toward building renovations, property improvements, and new construction.

Upcoming Congressional Action

Housing finance - as a member of the Financial Services Committee, Congressman Scott has been involved in dozens of hearings on the future of housing finance, including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA.  He opposes the PATH Act (H.R. 2767), which all but ends the federal backstop of mortgage financing and will force more Americans into short-term adjustable rate mortgages.  Congressman Scott will keep working to find more workable reforms of the system and to strengthen the 30-year fixed rate mortgage.

CFTC reauthorization - as a senior member of the Agriculture Committee subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management, Congressman Scott has held hearings on reauthorizing the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).  The CFTC regulates commodity futures and options markets. 

Farm Bill - after killing a bipartisan bill in the House and cutting $40 billion in food assistance programs, the House leadership cannot agree to name member of a conference committee to negotiate a compromise with the Senate bill.  Future action on the Farm Bill is unknown.

Thank you for reading Congressman Scott's newsletter.  You can keep in touch by also following him online on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.