Congressional votes for Jan. 15

Here's a look at how area members of Congress voted over the last week.

Along with roll call votes, the House also passed the Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act (S. 142), to require the Consumer Product Safety Commission to adopt a rule requiring child safety packaging for liquid nicotine containers; and passed the Presidential Library Donation Reform Act (H.R. 1069), to require the disclosure of information about contributors to presidential library fundraising organizations.

HOUSE VOTES

ASBESTOS LITIGATION: The House rejected an amendment sponsored by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, to the Fairness in Class Action Litigation and Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency Act (H.R. 1927). The amendment would have allowed plaintiffs in asbestos class-action lawsuits to access information in asbestos trusts related to their damage claims made in the lawsuits. The vote, on Jan. 8, was 174 yeas to 228 nays.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st)

NAYS: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th)

NOT VOTING: Cleaver D-MO (5th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS: The House passed the Fairness in Class Action Litigation and Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency Act (H.R. 1927), sponsored by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. The bill would block federal courts from certifying class action lawsuits for personal injury damages unless the group filing the lawsuit has shown all members of the group suffered injury. The vote, on Jan. 8, was 211 yeas to 188 nays.

YEAS: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st)

NOT VOTING: Cleaver D-MO (5th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

WASTEFUL GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS: The House passed the Taxpayers Right-To-Know Act (H.R. 598), sponsored by Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich. The bill would require the Office of Management and Budget to make available on the Internet an inventory of every federal government program that spends $1 million or more annually, as well as the agency's reviews of the effectiveness of those programs. The vote, on Jan. 11, was unanimous with 413 yeas.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

COAL MINING RULES: The House passed the STREAM Act (H.R. 1644), sponsored by Rep. Alexander X. Mooney, R-W.Va. The bill would require the government's Office of Surface Mining to increase disclosure of studies that support its adoption of rules governing coal mining, and require a review of an existing agency stream buffer zone rule for coal mines near waterways. The vote, on Jan. 12, was 235 yeas to 188 nays.

YEAS: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st)

NOT VOTING: Cleaver D-MO (5th)

ANTI-NORTH KOREA EFFORTS: The House passed the North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act (H.R. 757), sponsored by Rep. Edward R. Royce, R-Calif. The bill would require the president and his administration to apply sanctions against groups that provide forbidden aid and goods to North Korea, and report to Congress on U.S. efforts to use mass media to topple North Korea's government and on North Korea's cyberterrorism efforts. The vote, on Jan. 12, was 418 yeas to 2 nays.

YEAS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th), Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NOT VOTING: Hartzler R-MO (4th)

EPA WATER REGULATION: The House passed a resolution (S.J. Res. 22), sponsored by Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, stating congressional disapproval of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency rule defining "waters of the United States" and voiding the rule. The vote, on Jan. 13, was 253 yeas to 166 nays.

YEAS: Graves (MO) R-MO (6th), Hartzler R-MO (4th), Long R-MO (7th), Luetkemeyer R-MO (3rd), Smith (MO) R-MO (8th), Wagner R-MO (2nd)

NAYS: Clay D-MO (1st), Cleaver D-MO (5th)

SENATE VOTES

CONFIRMING APPEALS COURT JUDGE: The Senate confirmed the nomination of Luis Felipe Restrepo to serve as a judge on the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The vote, on Jan. 11, was 82 yeas to 6 nays.

YEAS: McCaskill D-MO

NAYS: Blunt R-MO

AUDITING THE FEDERAL RESERVE: The Senate rejected a cloture motion to end debate on the Federal Reserve Transparency Act (S. 2232), sponsored by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. The bill would require the U.S. Comptroller General to carry out a full audit of the Federal Reserve board of governors and its regional reserve banks. The vote to end debate, on Jan. 12, was 53 yeas to 44 nays, with a three-fifths majority required to end debate.

YEAS: Blunt R-MO, McCaskill D-MO