Hoyer Says CBFA Needs Committee Action to Get House Vote

House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., who schedules when legislation gets a vote in that chamber, said no one has brought up the Customs Business Fairness Act to him, and while he is aware it was part of a 2021 COVID-19 relief package, he hasn't heard anything about it lately.

The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's top priority is renewing the CBFA, which expired at the end of last year. The association, while in Washington for its Government Affairs Conference, is talking to representatives and senators Sept. 20, seeking support for a bill (see 2209190065).

One of NCBFAA's strategies is to nudge House Judiciary Committee members. Hoyer confirmed during a news conference Sept. 20 that a vote in that committee is important to the bill's chances of getting to a floor vote. Hoyer said it would probably need to go through that committee to win a spot on the suspension calendar. Bills that get a vote under suspension take less time on the floor but need strong bipartisan support to land a spot on that calendar.

The legislative director for the bill's chief sponsor said at the NCBFAA conference that Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., has his own agenda of what the committee needs to attend to, and CBFA may not be on it. Scott Rausch, legislative director for Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., said that while Nadler's office responded to an email he sent, the reply was not what he would call "friendly."

A spokesperson for Nadler did not respond to questions by press time.