118th Congress Convenes

A divided 118th Congress officially gaveled in at noon on Tuesday, January 3, 2023 with Democrats maintaining control of the Senate and Republicans assuming a narrow majority in the House. In the Senate, opening business comprised the swearing-in of Senators-elect and the election of Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) as president pro tempore, putting her third in line for the presidency. She is the first woman to hold that position in U.S. history. Following these ceremonial activities, the Senate adjourned until January 23.

Although the House also opened for session last week, the chamber took a tumultuous four days and 15 votes to elect a Speaker of the House, which postponed member swear-ins and other legislative business. Around midnight on Friday, January 6, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) secured the 216 votes needed to win. McCarthy’s 14 back-to-back losses mark the first time since 1923 that a House speaker wasn’t elected on the first ballot. The House returns to business today at 5:00 PM ET to adopt the rules of the 118th Congress, which include concessions to conservative members. Significant changes include allowing one member to force a speaker recall vote, the elimination of proxy voting and remote committee proceedings, adopting budget procedures aimed at restricting mandatory spending increases and repealing collective bargaining rules adopted last year.

The controversy in the House may portend challenges in advancing an agenda in that chamber, leaving the Senate with more opportunity for deal-making on key legislative issues. AACOM will continue to aggressively work to advance our priorities in this new environment, including advocating for the Fair Access in Residency (FAIR) Act, increasing National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for colleges of osteopathic medicine (COMs), renewing authorization for Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education funding set to expire in September 2023 and many others.