Sen. Dean Heller featured prominently in congressional goings-on last week beginning with an awkward exchange with President Donald Trump over immigration and ending with a joint letter with Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto urging no federal appropriations for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste project.

Heller was at a meeting on Tuesday when Trump came to Capitol Hill to talk with Senate Republicans about how to better work together going into the November elections. At the meeting, the Nevada Republican, one of two members who asked Trump a question at the gathering, inquired as to whether the president could hold off on pushing for funding for his Southern border wall until after the midterms, according to Politico. Heller was concerned about a government shutdown, but Trump seemed to brush his concerns aside. “We’ll see what happens,” Trump said.

The following day, the Senate passed Democratic legislation that would reinstate net neutrality rules that Trump’s Federal Communications Commission had voted to repeal. Democrats had sought to force Heller to vote with them on the issue or use it against him in the campaign. After Heller held his ground, Rep. Jacky Rosen, his likely Democratic opponent, called him out and accused him of “putting corporate special interest first.” Cortez Masto supported the measure.

The Senate last week confirmed the nomination of Gina Haspel to lead the Central Intelligence Agency. Heller voted for her nomination, but Cortez Masto opposed her over her role in the CIA’s enhanced interrogation program launched after the 9/11 attacks. “Her complicity darkened the light of America’s legal system and rule of law to the entire world, threatened the safety of our troops in combat, and ignored every principle of international human rights,” Cortez Masto said in a release announcing her opposition.

On Thursday, Heller and Cortez Masto wrote to the leaders of the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Energy and Water Subcommittee urging them not to provide funding for Yucca. “As you know, this ill-conceived and fiscally reckless project presents numerous unresolved health and safety concerns, and that is why we have continued to stand with the State of Nevada in its firm opposition to the temporary or permanent storage of nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain,” the letter said.

The letter came a day after Rep. Mark Amodei, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, voted for the annual spending bill that covers the Department of Energy, which included $267.7 million to support the Yucca projects. That is $100 million more than what President Donald Trump requested in his budget blueprint. The measure now goes to the House for consideration.

Separately, Cortez Masto wrote to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Friday seeking information about any efforts made by the NRC to find a hearing facility in Nevada should licensing for the project restart. “I am concerned the NRC is already moving in a direction to use allocated funds for a purpose that has not yet been authorized,” she wrote. Cortez Masto cites a July 31, 2017 NRC memorandum that directed staff to “perform a high-level survey of potential Nevada hearing venue sites and begin limited market research, including interactions with the General Services Administration concerning the possible procurement of Nevada hearing facility space."

Also on Friday, conservative Republicans bucked GOP leadership and helped tank the farm bill, which governs agriculture, anti-hunger and related programs. The bill went down 198 to 213, with 30 Republicans opposing it. However, Amodei voted for the measure. All delegation Democrats opposed it, including Rep. Dina Titus, Rep. Ruben Kihuen and Rosen. Their concerns with the bill included a $23 billion cut to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and a new requirement that recipients work or attend job training for 20 hours a week.

Titus, Rosen and Kihuen also appeared before the House Veterans Affairs Committee and discussed measures they have supported. Titus called on panel to allow veterans access to medical marijuana. Rosen touted a provision in veterans legislation passed by the House that would require the VA to pay for or deny payment to providers within 30 days of receiving an electronic claim, or within 45 days of receiving a paper claim. “Our veterans should not have to face debt collectors and bad credit because the government failed to pay for their medical care on time,” she said. Similar provision is included in veterans legislation she introduced earlier this year. Kihuen discussed a bill he introduced that would provide grants to community colleges to conduct analyses of their local economies to assess the employment openings and the skills and training possessed by veterans.

Members of the delegation also reacted favorably to the Supreme Court decision Monday to strike down the ban on sports betting. In a response to the ruling, Cortez Masto said “In Nevada, we know better than anyone that sports betting that is regulated responsibly and efficiently can be a great source of revenue for boosting local economies.” Titus said “As the representative for Las Vegas I have seen the success of the booming, regulated sports betting market in Nevada.” Kihuen was also upbeat. “Today’s Supreme Court decision creates an opportunity for Nevada to showcase its preeminent and gold standard expertise in the sports betting industry,” he said. On Friday, Heller wrote to Mark Emmert, President of the NCAA, lauding their decision to allow NCAA championship events to occur in states that offer sports wagering. “I urge you to closely consider the state of Nevada for championship site selection,” he said.

For a full rundown of the measures the delegates supported or opposed this week, check out The Nevada Independent’s congressional vote tracker and other information below.

SEN. DEAN HELLER
Legislation co-sponsored:
S. 2843 – A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the distribution of additional residency positions to help combat the opioid crisis.
S. 2884 – A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop a standard letter format to be provided to individuals who are indebted to the United States by virtue of their participation in benefits programs administered by the Secretary, to provide notice of debt by electronic means to such individuals when so elected, and for other purposes.
SEN. CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO
Legislation sponsored:
S. 2882 – A bill to require a report on the United States strategy in Syria, and for other purposes.
Legislation co-sponsored:
S. 2872 – A bill to amend the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 to reform the procedures provided under such Act for the initiation, investigation, and resolution of claims alleging that employing offices of the legislative branch have violated the rights and protections provided to their employees under such Act, including protections against sexual harassment and discrimination, and for other purposes.
S. 2842 – A bill to prohibit the marketing of bogus opioid treatment programs or products.
S. 2854 – A bill to establish requirements for use of a driver's license or personal identification card by certain financial institutions for opening an account or obtaining a financial product or service, and for other purposes.
S 2863 – A bill to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a coin in commemoration of the opening of the National Law Enforcement Museum in the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.
REP. DINA TITUS
Legislation co-sponsored:
H.R. 5857 – To protect transportation personnel and passengers from sexual assault and harassment, and for other purposes.
H.R. 5849 – To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to require that supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits be calculated with reference to the cost of the low-cost food plan as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture, and for other purposes.
H.R. 5819 – To promote democracy and human rights in Burma, and for other purposes.
H.R. 5814 – To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the deduction for certain expenses of elementary and secondary school teachers.