Amodei Report: Washington Wrap-Up, COVID Update, ICYMI

Dear Friend,

 

THE POLITICAL CLIMATE IN NEVADA AND THE NATION

 

First of all, I would like to thank you for your perseverance during these unprecedented times. 

 

The presidential election has produced a huge outpouring of emotion on both sides of the integrity issue. There is no doubt that we are a deeply divided nation. Much has either happened, or been alleged, regarding unlawful conduct of unelected officials at all levels of American Government. Add to all that: political demagoguery, social media attacks daily, and the national media hype, and it’s no wonder trust is nearly extinct.

 

The good news is, election integrity in the 11 counties that compromise Nevada’s Second Congressional District is looking well, and I would like to thank all of our election officials for their efforts this cycle.

 

As we watch the facts play out in court in regard to election contest jurisdiction in other states and counties, please keep in mind that Article I of the U.S. Constitution grants each state the responsibility of administering the voting process for federal elections. Accordingly, under this specific constitutional tasking, the Nevada Secretary of State’s (SOS) office oversees each County Clerk and Voter Registrar’s office. As such, I fully support the constitutional requirement that administering the voting process for federal elections stay a responsibility of state and local authorities, and do not believe it would be wise to give Congress the authority to set the election rules for Nevada.

 

If you are upset about the mail-in ballot process in Nevada – please be sure to keep that in mind the next time you vote for your state senator or assemblyperson. Finally, should you or someone you know have questions on the status of your ballot, please visit the Nevada Secretary of State’s website to use its online tools or to contact its office directly, you may find that information here. You may also call our Reno office at 775-686-5760, which will provide contact information for your local Registrar's Office.

 

FUNDING THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

 

This week, the House and Senate both passed a stopgap funding bill that gives Congress one additional week to enact a full-year spending bill in order to avoid a government shutdown later this month. The continuing resolution (CR) will last for one week, making the new funding deadline Friday December 18^th.

 

COVID UPDATE

 

Second Round of Relief Funding

 

It’s been nine months since Congress has passed a COVID relief bill, and over the last two weeks, Speaker Pelosi has instead chosen to prioritize less pressing issues – including legislation to decriminalize marijuana. While this and other legislative issues certainly deserve to be debated, the appropriate time is not in the middle of a pandemic when millions are enduring economic devastation.  

 

While I’m encouraged to see COVID discussions resume in recent weeks after months of inaction, I was appalled to hear Speaker Pelosi admit last week during a press conference that she intentionally held relief efforts hostage for political purposes, stonewalling opportunities to pass targeted relief bills or even consider bipartisan proposals.

 

One of those proposals the Speaker was uninterested in considering, was framework put forth in October by the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus, a caucus I serve on with 24 other Republicans and 25 Democrats. As you may remember, it was actually our proposal and continued efforts to get a relief bill across the finish line that eventually resulted in House and Senate leaders resuming discussions on a COVID relief bill ahead of the election. While these discussions also ended in no agreement being made, our Caucus continued working to produce a bipartisan solution. In fact, our most recent framework – a $908B compromise package introduced last week – would provide money for testing, small businesses, state and local governments, lawsuit liability protections, election support, and unemployment assistance, and has been embraced by both House and Senate leaders this week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and is gaining momentum as discussions continue.  

 

I’m pleased to see that the persistent efforts made by my colleagues and I on the Problem Solvers Caucus have paid off in terms of providing the framework that will be used as the basis for a common-sense, bipartisan, bicameral COVID emergency relief package.

 

While discussions among House and Senate leaders remain ongoing, I will continue working with my colleagues in favor of any common-sense reforms that will deliver immediate and much-needed relief to our communities. 

 

TESTING UPDATE

 

Since March, 1,048,852 — or one in three Nevadans  — have been tested for COVID, with a cumulative number of 1,795,433 tests performed. Over that same period, a total of 181,310 – or one in 19 Nevadans – has tested positive for COVID since the beginning of the pandemic. During this same period, 867,542 Nevadans have tested negative for the virus.

 

In recent days, Nevada has exceeded 15,000 tests or higher per day. While we can all agree that the rates of new cases, testing positivity, and other metrics have increased, it’s important to note that Nevada has continually outpaced its regional counterparts and the nation in terms of weekly testing per 100,000 population, with the White House Coronavirus Task Force Report for the last week of November putting the state ahead of both the region and the nation again for that metric.

 

Additionally, under the leadership of Dr. Mark Pandori, the Nevada State Public Health Lab (NSPHL) has proven itself to be a national model for innovative testing solutions. In fact, back in April, Nevada was one of the first states to approve its own testing components in a time when such supplies were extremely scarce. Further, through wise utilization of federal CARES Act testing dollars, the NSPHL spearheaded an initiative to build out testing capacity in rural Nevada at a state-run animal disease laboratory, which has the promise of bringing long-term testing sustainability to the region for years to come.

 

VACCINE UPDATE

 

Recently, the nation received some positive news with coronavirus vaccine announcements coming from Moderna, an American biotechnology company, Pfizer, an American pharmaceutical manufacturer, and Astra Zeneca, a British–Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical company. The strong success rates seen in each of these recent vaccine trials, and the recent approval of some of these vaccines, puts us one step closer to stopping the current spread of COVID-19 and restoring our economy. Learn more about the progress below:

 

PFIZER/BIONTECH

• Pfizer has said it will be able to provide 30 to 40 million doses of the vaccine before the end of the year, enough for 15 to 20 million people to get an initial shot and a booster three weeks later. Pfizer’s goal is to ramp up to 1.3 billion doses a year.

MODERNA

• Moderna has said it will be able to deliver 20 million doses of vaccine by the end of this year, enough to inoculate 10 million people. Additionally, Moderna’s Swiss-based manufacturing partner is building out capacity for 400 million doses per year – 300 million in Switzerland and 100 million in New Hampshire.

ASTRA ZENECA

• Under its agreement with the Trump Administration’s vaccine program known as Operation Warp Speed (OWS), Astra Zeneca will have to provide 300 million doses of its vaccine to the federal government once the vaccine is authorized by the FDA.

DISTRIBUTION LOGISTICS

• Army General Gustave Perna, Chief Operating Officer for OWS, has stated that vaccines will be “on the street” and headed to communities just 24 hours after being authorized by the FDA.

• As for logistics, General Perna has said that 3 million of the initial 6 million doses of Pfizer’s vaccine will be sent out first, and the remaining 3 million will be sent out 21 days later to ensure the second dose is available for everyone who received the first dose. An additional 400,000 doses will be kept in reserves for any unforeseen circumstances.

• When it comes to federally provided vaccine allotments, a tenet of OWS is that vaccine administration providers should not be required to source the various components needed to administer the vaccine themselves. As such, OWS has funded the sourcing of these supplies for the distribution kits. For example, the medical supply manufacturer Becton Dickinson has a contract to supply the government with 286 million syringes by the early spring.

DISTRIBUTION PROCESS (PFIZER):

• Pfizer will distribute the vaccines directly to administration sites across the country— according to General Perna, “they’re going to use FedEx and UPS to get it there. They know how to do this, they do it all the time.”

• Separately, OWS will send large vaccine kits, for up to 975 doses, containing needles, syringes, alcohol swabs, face masks and face shields needed to administer the vaccine. Most importantly, the kits will include cards for those receiving the vaccine, reminding them to get a second dose of the vaccine in three weeks.

DISTRIBUTION PROCESS (MODERNA):

• When authorized by the FDA, the vaccine made by Moderna will be included within smaller kits, with similar materials, for up to 100 doses that will be transported by the McKesson Corporation (the OWS distribution partner) to administration sites.

NEVADA INITIAL ALLOCATION

• The State is set to receive more than 164,000 doses throughout the month of December, which will be used for hospital staff, skilled nursing facility staff and residents, and other Tier One individuals.

• The allocation is set to include 91,650 doses of Pfizer vaccine and 72,500 doses from Moderna.

• The second doses of the allocation are expected three to four weeks after the initial dose is delivered.

• Pfizer’s vaccine cleared a critical hurdle Thursday when an independent panel of experts formally recommended that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorize the vaccine, paving the way for health care workers to begin getting shots as early as next week, with a target date of December 15^th for the first delivery to states. Should Moderna’s receive the same favorable recommendation at the independent panel’s meeting on December 17^th, those doses have a target arrival date of December 22^nd for first delivery to states.

• The Tier One population in Nevada is estimated at 173,000, so the December allocation would cover 94% of those individuals.

 

BY THE NUMBERS: NEVADA RELIEF FUNDING TO DATE 

 

As Nevada continues navigating its response to the economic and health care challenges posed by the pandemic, my staff and I have continued to work closely with our state and local partners to ensure we’re on track for recovery.

 

Through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, more than $18B in COVID relief funding has been delivered to Nevada, which includes $3.4B in emergency grants and loans for Nevada’s small businesses to save 500,000 jobs, nearly $1B in medical grants for hospitals and clinics to put toward testing, care, and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), $200M for K-12 and higher education initiatives, more than $2.5B for individual relief checks for nearly half of all Nevadans, and $1.25B in funding to Nevada’s state and local governments.

 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

 

NAS Fallon Wrap-Up

 

This week the House voted on the Conference Report to H.R. 6395, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. This legislation includes a 3% pay raise to our troops, authorizes extra pay for those serving in combat zones, and provides our troops and their families with the care and benefits they deserve. While I was pleased to see several critical and necessary provisions included in this legislation, the proposed expansion of the Fallon Range Training Complex (FRTC) was not included and the status quo will be maintained. Although the status quo of the geographic footprint of FRTC will remain for the time being, this issue will continue to be at the forefront of policy discussions and remain a top priority for the U.S. Navy, as it’s critical our military training operations keep pace with those of potential adversaries including China and Russia.

 

As such, I will continue working with the Navy, impacted counties, cities, and tribes, interested stakeholder groups, and concerned citizens to reach an ultimate solution that gives our servicemembers the training capacity they require, while also looking out for Nevada’s best interests. Since the Conference Report was finalized, I have already had calls with the Navy and additional stakeholders on how we should move forward on this issue in the 117^th Congress. I will be sure to keep you updated as we continue working to advance a mutually beneficial path forward for all. 

 

DACA Update

 

Last week, a federal district judge issued an order instructing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to post a public notice, within 3 calendar days of the order, that it is accepting first-time Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applicants for consideration.

 

As I’ve stated many times on this issue, it’s clearly Congress’s job to regulate immigration under Article I, Section 8, Clause 4 of the United States Constitution. The fact that we haven’t acted on DACA and continue not to – leaves a void. President Obama filled this void during his term, as did President Trump. As long as this void continues, leaders in the Executive Branch, whether Democrat or Republican, are going to continue issuing executive orders on issues that Congress refuses to act on. 

 

When it comes to immigration reform policy, our office will continue to focus on solutions to immigration and other issues, rather than opportunities for political pontification. I will be sure to keep you updated on any additional updates we receive on this important issue.

 

As always, thank you for subscribing to the Amodei Report. I look forward to continuing to keep you up to date on the issues you care about most. For additional information, please visit my website at amodei.house.gov or call my Washington office: (202) 225-6155, Reno office: (775) 686-5760, or Elko office: (775) 777-7705. To receive updates on what I am doing in Washington and in Nevada’s 2^nd District follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

 

Sincerely,

Mark E. Amodei