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Area Votes in Congress

WASHINGTON - The House was not in session. Here's how area senators voted on major issues in the week ending Dec. 20:

WASHINGTON - The House was not in session. Here's how area senators voted on major issues in the week ending Dec. 20:

Senate

Two-year budget deal. Voting 64-36, the Senate on Wednesday gave final congressional approval to a two-year bipartisan spending and revenue plan that will enable Congress to operate in a stable budget environment through September 2015. The measure (HJ Res 59) softens the impact of the blind cuts known as sequestration on defense readiness and critical domestic programs; raises a variety of taxes and fees by $7 billion over 10 years; reduces deficit spending by $23 billion over 10 years; and slightly raises discretionary spending to $1.012 trillion in fiscal 2014 and $1.014 trillion in fiscal 2015. Additionally, the bill would save $6 billion over 10 years by trimming cost-of-living increases in the pensions of military retirees who are younger than 62.

A yes vote was to send the bill to President Obama for his expected signature.

Voting yes: Cory Booker (D., N.J.), Thomas Carper (D., Del.), Robert P. Casey Jr. (D., Pa.), Chris Coons (D., Del.), and Robert Menendez (D., N.J.).

Voting no: Pat Toomey (R., Pa.).

2014 military budget. Voting 84-15, the Senate on Thursday gave final congressional approval to a bill (HR 3304) to authorize a $625.1 billion military budget for fiscal 2014, including $80.7 billion for actions in war zones; up to $60 billion for active-duty and retirement health care; $17.8 billion for nuclear-weapons programs run by the Department of Energy; $10 billion for the U.S. Special Operations Command and $9.3 billion for space- and land-based missile defenses.

The bill keeps the handling of sexual assault cases within the chain of command where they occur, but ends commanders' authority to dismiss the findings of a court martial.

A yes vote was to send the bill to President Obama for his expected signature.

Voting yes: Booker, Carper, Casey, Coons, Menendez, and Toomey.

Jeh Johnson confirmation. Voting 78-16, the Senate on Monday confirmed Jeh Johnson, 56, as the fourth director of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in its 11-year history. Carper said: "There is no doubt that even on a good day, serving as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security is a very hard job. Jeh Johnson, however, is no doubt up to this enormous task."

A yes vote was to confirm Johnson.

Voting yes: Booker, Carper, Casey, Coons, Menendez, and Toomey.

John Koskinen confirmation. Voting 59-36, the Senate on Friday confirmed the nomination of John Koskinen, 74, for a five-year term as commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. He becomes the 48th permanent (nonacting) IRS commissioner since the agency was founded in 1862. Most Republicans opposed his nomination in response to the scandal this year in which the IRS was found to have given extraordinary scrutiny to applications from conservative organizations for tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(4) of the tax code.

Voting yes: Booker, Carper, Casey, Coons, and Menendez.

Voting no: Toomey.

Ahead. Congress is in adjournment until the Second Session of the 113th Congress begins Jan. 6.