WASHINGTON (WHTC-AM/FM) – As Congress members are apparently set for another trip to Washington to clear a new small business relief package, there may be a measure to address the needs for such excursions in the future during this COVID 19 situation.
According to Republican Congressman Fred Upton of St. Joseph, the House is considering waiving its mandatory attendance requirement for Representatives to vote on matters and instituting a “proxy” system that would enable another member to cast the vote for an absent member, with the knowledge of the House clerk as a “check-and-balance” to maintain the integrity of the absentee voter. “We’ve got a lot of members who have tested positive that are self-quarantined,” Upton explained during his weekly appearance on “WHTC Morning News,” “some that are recovering from this, and I’m not sure that they are ready to go back to work yet, so we’ll not have all 435 members on hand if we do have to vote (on the relief package).”
Upton is planning to be on Capitol Hill for Thursday’s House vote on the relief package and possible changes to the Lower Chamber’s rules on its voting.
