Government Reform

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), a senior member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, today offered an amended version of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Salary Transparency Act that he and Congressman Tim Burchett (TN-2) introduced last week at a markup of the legislation. The full committee passed the bill by a voice vote, and it is now eligible for consideration by the full House of Representatives.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, today questioned Drug Enforcement Administrator Anne Milgram about the need to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level and about the agency’s approach to stopping fentanyl trafficking. Milgram was testifying at a Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance oversight hearing.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) today cosponsored the Lowering Drug Costs for American Families Act with Congressmen Frank Pallone (NJ-6), Bobby Scott (VA-3) and Richie Neal (MA-1) and will also cosponsor the Affordable Insulin Now Act introduced by Congresswoman Angie Craig (MN-2).

WASHINGTON – Congressmen Steve Cohen (TN-9) and Tim Burchett (TN-2) today introduced a measure ensuring the public has access to information about the salaries of Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) employees making more than $109,908 annually, or the maximum basic pay rate of a General Schedule Grade 13 (GS-13) Federal employee.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), a senior member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, today questioned Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) CEO Jeff Lyash at a Subcommittee on Water and the Environment hearing reviewing President Biden’s 2024 Budget Request for that agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) today questioned expert witnesses at a hearing before the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management titled “Never Ending Emergencies – An Examination of the National Emergencies Act.” When he was Chairman of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, Congressman Cohen held hearings on the National Emergencies Act and achieved bipartisan support for its reform.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) today introduced the National Guard and Reservist Debt Relief Extension Act, a measure that continues the exemption from the means test under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy code for national guard members and reservists, continuing the parity with active duty servicemembers.

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9) today introduced the John Tanner and Jim Cooper Fairness and Independence in Redistricting (FAIR) Act which would require states to take their congressional apportionment decisions out of the political process and place it in the hands of independent redistricting commissions. The measure is named after former Tennessee Congressmen John Tanner and Jim Cooper, both champions of legislation to end partisan gerrymandering.