Sheldon Whitehouse
Senator for Rhode Island · Democratic · United States
“Well, here is my evidence: We know that climate change makes many natural disasters more frequent and/or--could be either--more extreme, including hurricanes, floods, and wildfires--the same wildfires that blanketed much of the Midwest, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic in smoke just last week, resulting in American cities like Chicago, Detroit…”
“He wants our industries to be collapsed, our industries to be held to a different standard--not one word from China--and espousing policies like this electric vehicle subsidy for the richest Americans, while, at the same time, there are people flying around in private jets to global conferences to talk about climate change.”
“And the warnings that I have described are now very real. We can do nothing about it, and that has been the plan in the Senate ever since Citizens United dialed up the fossil fuel industry to influence us with dark money.”
“With the physical manifestations of climate change ``already showing up;'' Kapnick at JPMorgan says that investors now recognize ``that nonlinear step-changes--and even policy-driven disclosure--can force repricing faster than traditional models assume.'' But figuring out how to model such risks represents a gargantuan challenge for profe…”
“They are building coal facilities every week, while the Democrats, when they had control of government, were shutting them down. You could describe what was just discussed as an absolute China-first policy--America last, China first.”
“A breakdown of AMOC would mean weather patterns as we know them today would be completely disrupted. The fallout might include much colder winters in the UK, for example, with more recent models indicating the potential for extreme cold spells that could drive the temperature to 20C below zero in London, and result in Arctic sea ice poten…”
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Every one of 107 lines we hold for Sheldon Whitehouse, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 2 of 3.
“President, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of that proposition, S. Res. 556; further, that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from Indiana. Mr. BANKS. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, it is pretty clear that this resolution is an attack on a red State by one of my colleagues from a blue State. I respect my colleague, but this resolution doesn't pass muster.”
“The climate crisis clobbers home values, drives up insurance prices, and causes insurance insolvency in climate- risky areas across the country but nowhere so more than Florida. This is a crisis for families in Florida. The human stories behind this are heartbreaking, and it is growing into a crisis for all of us. Florida's insurance market is the canary in the American climate risk coal mine. As climate change gets worse and risks spread, other States will find themselves in a similar position--my own, being a coastal State, amongst them. So can we all agree on this simple truth: that Florida's insurance market is gravely stressed by climate risks? Mr.”
“Now, Citizens Property Insurance--this one--the State-backed insurer of last resort, has a similar backstop when it can't pay claims, but in real life, those levees to prop up Citizens are often going to be uncollectible. There are credible scenarios in which the losses of Citizens Property Insurance exceed its ability to pay claims, and the assessment scheme fails. Those are plausible scenarios. Well, to defend, Citizens engages in periodic depopulation efforts where it hands off to those same popup, politically connected, Demotech-rated local insurers tens and sometimes hundreds of thousands of homeowners. Boom--the homeowner is dumped into an insurance company she has never heard of. It is a cascade happening.”
“An insolvent insurer is, of course, a disaster for homeowners who have to wait, eventually, to be paid by a State-run organization--the guaranty fund--that takes over for the failed, insolvent insurance. Well, two problems result from that. One, the delay in paying claims destroys neighborhoods. It is great to get paid by your insurance company when you have a major claim and your house is wrecked, but if the money doesn't come soon, you can't rebuild and the neighborhood doesn't come back. And we see that in Florida now. Two, other Floridians are on the hook for all those claims. The guaranty fund transmits that cost to other Florida policyholders.”
“A recent investigation by the Wall Street Journal found that insurers rated by Demotech are 30 times more likely--30 times more likely--to become insolvent than those graded by other rating companies. So if Fannie and Freddie were to stop accepting mortgages with a high-risk Demotech-rated insurer, the Florida real estate market would come to a shuddering halt. This is the share of the insurance market in Florida rated by Demotech. This is what is left of the traditional ratings, and this is Citizens Property Insurance, which, because it is State-backed, doesn't require ratings. It has its own separate problems. But this Demotech problem is real. Almost 20 percent of Demotech- rated insurers in Florida have gone insolvent in the last decade--20 percent; 1 in 5, gone.”
“When banks originate mortgages, they often flip them to government- [[Page S4102]] sponsored entities like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. So, a new problem: Fannie and Freddie will only purchase mortgages which are protected by an insurer and only if that insurer has a requisite financial stability rating. Well, to obtain a financial stability rating, insurers pay a rating agency. Given the insolvency risk in the Florida insurance market, how do insurance companies there obtain the stability rating required by Fannie and Freddie? Most go to an operation called Demotech. Mark my words, you will hear a lot more about Demotech as this situation worsens. Demotech has rated nearly all of these small, local companies that it covers ``A'' or above. Well, it turns out these ratings are too good to be true.”
“If it is $14,000 now, a 300 percent increase, four times as much, you add--call it a $56,000 annual expense to own a home, and you run a present value of that simple math, that all comes off the value of the home. Even at these high premium rates, many home insurers in Florida are at risk of insolvency. After catastrophic hurricane losses in recent years, many of the major insurers--including Farmers, Progressive, and AAA--all left the Florida market entirely leaving behind small, local, and less stable insurers. Many of those small, local, and less stable insurers have gone bust when claims come in. This insurance problem creates a mortgage problem in Florida. Banks won't finance a home mortgage unless the home is protected by insurance.”
“First, data I collected as chair of the Senate Budget Committee shows that Florida has, by far, the highest insurance nonrenewal rate in the country--that is the rate at which insurers say to their customer: I am sorry. I know you have been a good customer. We have been insuring you for years, but your property is now so endangered that we can no longer insure you. We are done. You have got to go find new insurance. Florida: Highest nonrenewal rate in the country. Second, Florida has, by far, the highest average premiums in the country--by some estimates, approaching $14,000 per year. Economists expect these costs to continue to rise. This chart predicts future insurance rate increases as high as 300 percent in coastal Florida in the next 30 years--the period of a mortgage entered into today. Just do some quick math.”
“This chart tracks billion-dollar climate disasters in the United States between 1980 and today. The pattern is crystal clear. As you can see, these events and their costs are increasing. According to NOAA, of all the climate-driven disasters since 1980, hurricanes have caused the most damage--over $1.5 trillion total adding all that up--with an average cost of $23 billion per event. And hurricanes hit southeastern States--particularly Florida--the hardest. Between 2020 and 2024, nine hurricanes hit Florida causing $244 billion in damages in Florida alone. They went on often to create more damage in other States--but $244 billion in Florida. So what does the data show is happening in Florida insurance markets as a result?”
“I asked if we could agree that the oceans are warming as a consequence. There is really no dispute about that either. In fact, they are warming by about 20 zettajoules a year. Nevertheless, Republicans still objected. So I shifted my focus to economic threats. I asked if we could agree that climate change is driving up the cost of homeowners insurance or that it threatens home values. Very clear propositions demonstrated in real life. But, again, Republicans objected. Well, the closer these threats are to your home, the harder they become to deny. So let me try a narrower simple truth today: Florida's insurance market is gravely stressed by climate risks. That is it. Can we all agree on that? I have explained many times that climate change is driving an increase in severe storms, including hurricanes.”
“Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 115 (Wednesday, July 15, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 115 (Wednesday, July 15, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S4101-S4102] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] Unanimous Consent Request--S. Res. 556 Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, climate change is real. Simple proposition. Earlier this year, I came to the floor and asked my colleagues if they could all agree on that simple factual proposition. Well, they could not, so I return to the floor in hopes that our Republican colleagues could at least agree to some of the simple truths that make up the larger truth of climate change. I asked if we could agree, for instance, that sea levels are rising as a consequence. There is really no dispute about that, but Republicans objected.”
“We have warnings from the Home Mortgage Association. We have warnings from the international Financial Stability Board. There is an enormous amount of very solid and responsible data that comes not out of the environmental community but out of the financial community warning about the looming great climate insurance collapse. And if we refuse to pay attention to it, we will fail in our duties. I yield the floor.”
“Mr. President, I would just point out briefly in response to my distinguished colleague that an entire industry understands that climate risk is driving homeowners insurance. [[Page S2925]] The home insurance industry is actually under both a business model requirement and a fiduciary legal obligation to do its very, very best to predict risk, figure out what is driving that risk, and act accordingly. For that reason, we had the president of Aon testify in the Budget Committee about how climate risk is damaging insurance markets. We have an editorial by a board member of the biggest insurance company in the world, Allianz. We have warnings from the risk manager--former risk manager--of Goldman Sachs. We have warnings from the former head of the Bank of England, now the Prime Minister of Canada.”
“The bottom line here is that climate risk has moved from the science department to the economics department, and it has landed hard in home insurance, and Americans are paying the price. So as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged, and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 554; further, that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from Wyoming.”
“The home is unmortgageable, and an unmortgageable home is almost inevitably an unsellable home. When you lose your insurance, lenders may also force place a new home insurance policy on you to replace the policy that was canceled. Force- placed insurance obviously protects first the lender's interest, not the homeowner's property, and it almost always costs much, much more, and it covers less. And it is added to the mortgage payment, and that can be a huge financial blow to a family. All of this added cost and risk means that climate change is dragging down home equity value, undermining the primary driver of wealth appreciation for America's middle class, and, by the way, reducing property tax revenue for things like schools and public safety and basic services provided by local government.”
“Both phenomena are driven by climate change. Higher home insurance means less money to spend on household essentials like groceries and gas, which are already more expensive than ever. But higher insurance rates are not actually a family's worst-case scenario. The worst-case home insurance scenario for a family is nonrenewal. More and more, in high climate risk counties across the country, insurance companies, unwilling to take on this additional risk, are refusing to insure homes at all. This is a nightmare for homeowners. First of all, you have the enormous hassle of having to go out and find new insurance, which probably costs more and is worse. But also, most lenders won't approve a mortgage unless the borrower also purchases insurance. And if the home is uninsurable, guess what.”
“We know this increase isn't just inflation because insurance premiums are increasing 40 percent faster than inflation. We know that this cost increase is driven by climate change, and we know it because the numbers don't lie. You can look at the areas with the highest climate risk, and you see that the cost increases most in those counties, the ones at most risk from climate change. The largest increases in insurance rates between 2014 and 2023 happened in the highest climate risk areas--obvious and true. In high-risk States like Florida and Louisiana, premiums are estimated to average more than $14,000 and $11,000 respectively. That is not by accident. That is because those low-lying States are being hammered by increasingly violent and wet storms and hurricanes, combined with rising sea levels.”
“Hurricanes Harvey, Maria, and Irma made 2017--here, that--the costliest year on record. But setting aside the spikes, the average cost is steadily increasing, along with the frequency of disasters. And these costs fall first where? On the insurance companies. In 2023, insurers lost money in 18 of 50 States. That is an increase from 12 States 5 years previously and 8 States in 2013--8 to 12 to 18. The losses to insurers are also increasing. To offset these climate-driven losses, insurance companies raised their premiums. And, sure enough, from 2013 to 2022, home insurance premiums more than doubled, rising to be over 20 percent of mortgage payments, on average. When a family starts with a pretty big payment like their home insurance payment and it then doubles, that is a big hit to the family's finances.”
“Disasters like those destroy homes and destroy infrastructure, and all that destruction carries a heavy cost. Before the Trump administration stopped the practice in 2025, NOAA-- the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration--actually used to track the costs of this destruction every year. Thanks to NOAA, we have all this data going back that shows that climate disasters and climate costs have been increasing--quite dramatically, actually. This chart draws on NOAA data from before 2025 and other aggregated data since that, and it shows that the increase in climate change- driven weather has been very notable between 1980 and today--from here up to here. Costs of the disasters spike in particular years, depending on the type of disasters and where the impacts occurred.”
“It is a massive, massive measured scientific fact. And yet Republicans sent someone to the floor to object. Again, there is essentially no nonfossil fuel-funded science disputing any of this. And I have to put the fossil fuel-funded science in air quotes because it is not real science. It is just designed to look like science and tell a lie in scientific vocabulary. So if the environmental realities are too much for the Senate to acknowledge, perhaps my colleagues will at least recognize the economic threats that are emerging. So here is today's simple truth: Climate change is driving up the cost of homeowners insurance. Can we agree on that? Well, let me break down why we should agree on that. Climate change drives extreme weather disasters, including hurricanes and floods and wildfires.”
“Mr. President, I think it is virtually undisputed, among people who are not on fossil fuel's payroll, that climate change is real. Earlier this year, I came to the floor, and I asked my colleagues if they could all agree on that simple, scientific fact. Well, unfortunately, they could not. So I came back. I returned to the floor in hopes that my Republican colleagues could, at least, agree to some of the simple truths that make up the bigger picture of climate change. I asked if we could agree, for instance, that sea levels are rising due to carbon emissions--again, essentially zero dispute on that fact in the scientific community--but Republicans objected. I asked if we could agree that oceans are warming. Oceans are warming by multiple zettajoules. That is a number with 21 zeros behind it.”
“President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The Senator from Hawaii.”
“We have an editorial by a board member of the biggest insurance company in the world, Allianz. We have warnings from the risk manager--former risk manager--of Goldman Sachs. We have warnings from the former head of the Bank of England, now the Prime Minister of Canada. We have warnings from the Home Mortgage Association. We have warnings from the international Financial Stability Board. There is an enormous amount of very solid and responsible data that comes not out of the environmental community but out of the financial community warning about the looming great climate insurance collapse. And if we refuse to pay attention to it, we will fail in our duties. I yield the floor. Mr. WHITEHOUSE. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll. Mr. SCHATZ. Mr.”
“The resolution being offered today offers us a bumper sticker. American homeowners deserve real solutions. With that, Mr. President, I object. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The objection is heard. The Senator from Rhode Island. Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I would just point out briefly in response to my distinguished colleague that an entire industry understands that climate risk is driving homeowners insurance. [[Page S2925]] The home insurance industry is actually under both a business model requirement and a fiduciary legal obligation to do its very, very best to predict risk, figure out what is driving that risk, and act accordingly. For that reason, we had the president of Aon testify in the Budget Committee about how climate risk is damaging insurance markets.”
“Replacement costs are up because Biden-era climate regulations drove up the price of lumber, appliances, and labor--regulations the Trump administration is now working to unwind because of the damage they did. When it costs more to build a home, it costs more to insure one. That is not a climate story. It is a policy failure story. If we are serious about lower premiums, the answer is simple: Build more homes that people can afford. Every regulation that makes construction more expensive means fewer homes are built. Constrained supply drives up values, and higher home values mean higher premiums. That is not a partisan talking point. That is economics. We don't need more climate mandates. We need more housing. And we can start by getting the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act to the President's desk.”
“So as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged, and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 554; further, that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from Wyoming. Ms. LUMMIS. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, this resolution asks us to accept, without scrutiny, that correlation equals causation. It is true that premiums are rising, but this Senate deserves an honest accounting of why.”
“Force- placed insurance obviously protects first the lender's interest, not the homeowner's property, and it almost always costs much, much more, and it covers less. And it is added to the mortgage payment, and that can be a huge financial blow to a family. All of this added cost and risk means that climate change is dragging down home equity value, undermining the primary driver of wealth appreciation for America's middle class, and, by the way, reducing property tax revenue for things like schools and public safety and basic services provided by local government. The bottom line here is that climate risk has moved from the science department to the economics department, and it has landed hard in home insurance, and Americans are paying the price.”
“The worst-case home insurance scenario for a family is nonrenewal. More and more, in high climate risk counties across the country, insurance companies, unwilling to take on this additional risk, are refusing to insure homes at all. This is a nightmare for homeowners. First of all, you have the enormous hassle of having to go out and find new insurance, which probably costs more and is worse. But also, most lenders won't approve a mortgage unless the borrower also purchases insurance. And if the home is uninsurable, guess what. The home is unmortgageable, and an unmortgageable home is almost inevitably an unsellable home. When you lose your insurance, lenders may also force place a new home insurance policy on you to replace the policy that was canceled.”
“You can look at the areas with the highest climate risk, and you see that the cost increases most in those counties, the ones at most risk from climate change. The largest increases in insurance rates between 2014 and 2023 happened in the highest climate risk areas--obvious and true. In high-risk States like Florida and Louisiana, premiums are estimated to average more than $14,000 and $11,000 respectively. That is not by accident. That is because those low-lying States are being hammered by increasingly violent and wet storms and hurricanes, combined with rising sea levels. Both phenomena are driven by climate change. Higher home insurance means less money to spend on household essentials like groceries and gas, which are already more expensive than ever. But higher insurance rates are not actually a family's worst-case scenario.”
“That is an increase from 12 States 5 years previously and 8 States in 2013--8 to 12 to 18. The losses to insurers are also increasing. To offset these climate-driven losses, insurance companies raised their premiums. And, sure enough, from 2013 to 2022, home insurance premiums more than doubled, rising to be over 20 percent of mortgage payments, on average. When a family starts with a pretty big payment like their home insurance payment and it then doubles, that is a big hit to the family's finances. We know this increase isn't just inflation because insurance premiums are increasing 40 percent faster than inflation. We know that this cost increase is driven by climate change, and we know it because the numbers don't lie.”
“Thanks to NOAA, we have all this data going back that shows that climate disasters and climate costs have been increasing--quite dramatically, actually. This chart draws on NOAA data from before 2025 and other aggregated data since that, and it shows that the increase in climate change- driven weather has been very notable between 1980 and today--from here up to here. Costs of the disasters spike in particular years, depending on the type of disasters and where the impacts occurred. Hurricanes Harvey, Maria, and Irma made 2017--here, that--the costliest year on record. But setting aside the spikes, the average cost is steadily increasing, along with the frequency of disasters. And these costs fall first where? On the insurance companies. In 2023, insurers lost money in 18 of 50 States.”
“So if the environmental realities are too much for the Senate to acknowledge, perhaps my colleagues will at least recognize the economic threats that are emerging. So here is today's simple truth: Climate change is driving up the cost of homeowners insurance. Can we agree on that? Well, let me break down why we should agree on that. Climate change drives extreme weather disasters, including hurricanes and floods and wildfires. Disasters like those destroy homes and destroy infrastructure, and all that destruction carries a heavy cost. Before the Trump administration stopped the practice in 2025, NOAA-- the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration--actually used to track the costs of this destruction every year.”
“I asked if we could agree, for instance, that sea levels are rising due to carbon emissions--again, essentially zero dispute on that fact in the scientific community--but Republicans objected. I asked if we could agree that oceans are warming. Oceans are warming by multiple zettajoules. That is a number with 21 zeros behind it. It is a massive, massive measured scientific fact. And yet Republicans sent someone to the floor to object. Again, there is essentially no nonfossil fuel-funded science disputing any of this. And I have to put the fossil fuel-funded science in air quotes because it is not real science. It is just designed to look like science and tell a lie in scientific vocabulary.”
“Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 103 (Thursday, June 18, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 103 (Thursday, June 18, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2924-S2925] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] Unanimous Consent Request--S. Res. 554 Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I think it is virtually undisputed, among people who are not on fossil fuel's payroll, that climate change is real. Earlier this year, I came to the floor, and I asked my colleagues if they could all agree on that simple, scientific fact. Well, unfortunately, they could not. So I came back. I returned to the floor in hopes that my Republican colleagues could, at least, agree to some of the simple truths that make up the bigger picture of climate change.”
“I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The clerk will call the roll. The senior assistant legislative clerk called the roll.”
“(a) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, amendment between the Houses, or conference report that includes corporate tax breaks for outsourcing American jobs and shifting profits offshore. (b) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three- fifths of the Members, duly chosen and sworn. An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under subsection (a). ______”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Page S2236] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1616. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST TAX BREAKS FOR OFFSHORING JOBS AND PROFITS.”
“The Director of the Congressional Budget Office shall, to the extent practicable, prepare for each bill or resolution of a public character reported by any committee of the House of Representatives or the Senate that would increase carbon pollution from fossil fuels an analysis of the effect of the legislation on the costs of homeowner property insurance, products, and commodities caused by the effect of that legislation on climate change and submit that analysis to the applicable committee. ______”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Page S2236] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1615. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. CBO REPORTS ON THE COSTS OF LEGISLATION THAT WOULD INCREASE CARBON POLLUTION FROM FOSSIL FUELS.”
“(a) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, amendment between the Houses, or conference report that gives tax breaks to big oil companies and increases insurance costs caused by climate change. (b) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three- fifths of the Members, duly chosen and sworn. An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under subsection (a). ______”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Page S2236] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1614. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST LEGISLATION THAT GIVES TAX BREAKS TO BIG OIL COMPANIES AND INCREASES INSURANCE COSTS CAUSED BY CLIMATE CHANGE.”
“An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under subsection (a). ______”
“(a) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any reconciliation bill or joint resolution reported [[Page S2236]] pursuant to section 2002, or an amendment to, conference report on, or amendment between the Houses in relation to such a bill or joint resolution, that does not require each agency that has had staff of the Department of Government Efficiency digging into protected data of the agency to conduct a comprehensive systems audit to check for any vulnerabilities that could interfere with system performance or security or expose personally identifiable information. (b) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three- fifths of the Members, duly chosen and sworn.”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Pages S2235-S2236] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1613. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST RECONCILIATION LEGISLATION THAT FAILS TO REQUIRE AGENCIES INFILTRATED BY DOGE TO UNDERGO A SYSTEM PERFORMANCE AND SECURITY AUDIT.”
“The Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of the Senate may revise the allocations of a committee or committees, aggregates, and other appropriate levels in this resolution, and make adjustments to the pay-as-you-go ledger, for one or more bills, joint resolutions, amendments, amendments between the Houses, motions, or conference reports relating to making corporations pay their fair share in taxes, which may include rolling back tax breaks for giant companies that have merged, by the amounts provided in such legislation for those purposes, provided that such legislation would not increase the deficit over the period of the total of fiscal years 2025 through 2034. ______”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Page S2235] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1612. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. DEFICIT-NEUTRAL RESERVE FUND RELATING TO MAKING GIANT CORPORATIONS PAY THEIR FAIR SHARE.”
“(a) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any revenue, Social Security, or Medicare bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, amendment between the Houses, or conference report that fails to extend the solvency of Social Security and Medicare by making the wealthy contribute a fairer share of taxes. (b) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three- fifths of the Members, duly chosen and sworn. An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under subsection (a). ______”
“Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)] [Senate] [Page S2235] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 1611. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the concurrent resolution H. Con. Res. 14, establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2025 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2026 through 2034; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST LEGISLATION THAT FAILS TO EXTEND THE SOLVENCY OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE BY MAKING THE WEALTHY CONTRIBUTE A FAIRER SHARE.”
“An affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and sworn, shall be required to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of order raised under subsection (a). ______”
“(a) Point of Order.--It shall not be in order in the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, motion, amendment, amendment between the Houses, or conference report that would increase carbon pollution from fossil fuels unless the legislation is accompanied by an analysis prepared by the Congressional Budget Office of the effect of the legislation on the costs of homeowner property insurance, products, and commodities caused by the effect of the legislation on climate change. (b) Waiver and Appeal.--Subsection (a) may be waived or suspended in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of three- fifths of the Members, duly chosen and sworn.”