House and Senate Action

On Monday afternoon, Donald J. Trump was officially sworn into office, becoming the 47th President of the United States. Due to extreme cold, the inauguration ceremony was relocated to the Capitol Rotunda, where an audience of lawmakers, cabinet nominees, former presidents, and prominent donors gathered to witness the event. The ceremony featured the traditional swearing-in formalities, with the chief justice of the Supreme Court administering the oath of office. In his inaugural address, President Trump outlined his administration's vision, emphasizing key priorities such as economic growth and national security.

While Congress was primary focused on inaugural festivities, the Senate briefly convened Monday evening to consider the Laken Riley Act (S. 5). The legislation passed with bipartisan support (12 Democrats joined all 52 Republicans in voting for the bill). The measure requires the secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain undocumented immigrants arrested for or charged with theft, burglary and other related crimes. It also would allow individual states to bring litigation against the federal government over its implementation of immigration, detention, and deportation policies. Last week, the Senate voted in favor of adding two amendments that, taken together, expand detainment requirements to include undocumented immigrants charged with assaulting a law enforcement officer and crimes causing death or serious injury. The measure will head back to the House for a final vote.

The Senate also confirmed Trump’s first cabinet pick, unanimously voting in favor of Marco Rubio’s nomination for secretary of State. For the remainder of the week, the upper chamber will continue to focus on advancing President Trump’s cabinet picks.

Across Capitol Hill, the House is expected to give final approval to the Laken Riley Act this week. The bill is expected to receive significant bipartisan support and President Trump’s swift signature. The House is also slated to consider a comprehensive forest management package, known as the Fix Our Forests Act (FOFA; H.R. 471). Please see below for additional information on FOFA.

President Trump Issues Dozens of Executive Orders Testing Presidential Powers

Upon being sworn into office, President Trump wasted no time in beginning to implement his agenda. While he signed just one executive order (EO) on his first day in 2017, on Monday evening, he signed 200 – many of which are aimed at unraveling the policies of former President Joe Biden. Notably, many of the Orders are expected to face significant legal scrutiny and could ultimately be overturned by court action. Nevertheless, the EO’s span a wide array of policy issues, including:

Immigration: The majority of Trump’s executive actions target immigration, which represents his longest-running domestic priority.

Among other measures, President Trump moved to:

• Declare a national border emergency, enabling the deployment of U.S. military forces to the southern border;
• Designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, granting law enforcement and intelligence agencies expanded authority to combat their activities;
• Reinstate his “Remain in Mexico” policy, requiring migrants seeking asylum to stay in Mexico until their U.S. immigration court date;
• End the “catch and release” policy, which previously allowed certain low-risk undocumented immigrants to be released from custody while they await their court hearing; and,
• Abolish birthright citizenship, aiming to end automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. to non-citizen parents.

Energy & Climate: President Trump also signed a series of executive orders aimed at reversing many of President Biden’s clean energy initiatives and accelerating domestic oil and gas production.

The executive actions will:

• Withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accord;
• Declare a national energy emergency, which could unlock executive authority to streamline the energy permitting process;
• Ease restrictions on tailpipe pollution and fuel economy standards;
• Roll back efficiency standards on common household appliances, including dishwashers, shower heads, and gas stoves;
• Expand oil and gas drilling on federal lands;
• Fast-track the construction of energy pipelines; and,
• Eliminate federal environmental justice programs.

Trade: On Monday, President Trump signed EO’s directing federal agencies to review trade practices and examine the feasibility of creating an “External Revenue Service.” While he did not take action to impose broad tariffs on imports, Trump pledged to enact a 25 percent tariff on products from Canada and Mexico, beginning February 1. Notably, he also declared the U.S. trade deficit a “national emergency,” though the implications of this declaration are unclear.

Government Reform: In addition to establishing the newly created “Department of Government Efficiency,” President Trump signed several executive orders aimed at reforming the federal government and reshaping its workforce policies.

Key measures include orders to:

• End remote work for federal employees;
• Freeze all federal hiring;
• Rescind federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies;
• Establish biological sex definitions that would remove gender self-identification on federal documents;
• Remove protections for transgender individuals in federal prisons, as well as migrants in U.S. custody; and,
• Strengthen executive control over federal workers, giving the president power to dismiss “insubordinate employees.”

Health: On Monday, Trump moved to withdraw the U.S. from the World Health Organization (WHO), which is an agency within the United Nations that seeks to promote global health and respond to health emergencies. While the EO formally initiates the withdrawal process, the U.S. is required by law to provide one year’s notice and pay all outstanding financial obligations before it can formally exit.

Technology: After years of promoting a TikTok ban, Trump signed an executive order on Monday delaying enforcement of the federally mandated prohibition, which officially took effect over the weekend. The law, enacted last year, requires TikTok’s China-based parent company (ByteDance) to divest its ownership of the app or face a nationwide ban in the U.S.

House Set to Consider the Fix Our Forests Act

This week, the House is set to consider legislation – the Fix Our Forests Act (FOFA) – that seeks to restore forest health, increase resiliency to catastrophic wildfires, and protect communities in the wildland-urban interface. The measure, which was approved by the House last year, was reintroduced last week by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR) and Congressman Scott Peters (D-CA).

The measure aligns closely with the recommendations of the Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission and seeks to achieve its objectives by expediting environmental reviews, reducing frivolous lawsuits, and increasing the pace and scale of forest restoration projects. Additionally, the bill would provide federal land managers, including the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), with new tools to accelerate forestry projects.

Specifically, FOFA would use fireshed mapping to prioritize the treatment of forests at the highest risk of wildfire. In addition, and to increase the pace of treatments, the bill would allow agencies to conduct critical forest management work concurrently with producing an environmental analysis. It also would allow agencies to adopt categorical exclusions – or specific exemptions from full National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review – for certain forest management projects. To bolster rural economies, the bill strengthens tools like the Good Neighbor Authority, Stewardship Contracting, and Shared Stewardship.

In an effort to deter frivolous litigation, FOFA limits court injunctions against projects unless substantial environmental harm can be demonstrated. The legislation also would require litigants to sue within 120 days of project approval and to have participated in the public comment process. Furthermore, the bill promotes intergovernmental collaboration by establishing a new Fireshed Center – made up of representatives from different agencies – to inform suppression and management decisions.

The latest iteration of FOFA also incorporates amendments that were approved in the previous Congress. This includes NSDA-spearheaded language that would formally define special districts and clarify that they are, in fact, an eligible local government partner in the forest management policy space. Additionally, the Act would expand the Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) to include special districts, allowing them to collaborate with the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management on cross-jurisdictional restoration work.

Although the measure advanced through the House with bipartisan support last year, some Democrats continue to have concerns that the proposed reforms would weaken bedrock environmental laws.

Legislation Reintroduced to Study Wildfire Insurance Coverage

Last week, House Financial Services Committee Ranking member Maxine Waters (D-CA) reintroduced the Wildfire Insurance Coverage Study Act. The legislation would require the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a comprehensive study on the availability and affordability of insurance coverage for damages caused by wildfires. Among other things, GAO would be directed to identify mitigation practices that would assist in reducing premiums for insurance policies covering wildfire damage. In addition, the study would examine the existing state of property insurance coverage, the response from State insurance regulatory agencies, and the challenges related to underwriting wildfire risk. The results of the study would help inform potential legislative or regulatory action. It should be noted that the bill previously passed the Financial Services Committee by a vote of 47-2.

Relevant Hearings and Markups

House Judiciary Committee: On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement will hold a hearing titled “Restoring Immigration Enforcement in America.” The hearing will examine the Biden-Harris administration’s immigration enforcement practices and make recommendations for immigration enforcement under President Trump. Additional details and a witness list can be found here.

House Transportation Committee: On Wednesday, the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit will hold a hearing titled “America Builds: Highways to Move People and Freight.” The hearing will address the need for Congress to reauthorize the nation’s surface transportation programs, particularly those within the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Notably, the current surface transportation authorization will expire on September 30, 2026. Additional details and a witness list can be found here.

House Homeland Security Committee: On Wednesday, the House Homeland Security Committee will hold hearing titled “Unconstrained Actors: Assessing Global Cyber Threats to the Homeland.” Additional details are located here.

House Energy and Commerce Committee: On Thursday, the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will hold a hearing titled “Strengthening American Leadership in Wireless Technology.” Details can be found here.