House leaders on Tuesday reversed course on plans to bring the chamber back into session next week amid fears about whether it is safe to return to the Capitol amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Majority Leader Steny Hoyer
Steny Hamilton HoyerOn The Money: Coronavirus exposes scars of Great Recession | House, Senate return next week for next coronavirus relief bill | McConnell state bankruptcy remarks raise questions | Small business coronavirus loan program reopens Overnight Health Care: Trump health official says US will 'easily' perform 8M tests in May | White House shifts messaging strategy on coronavirus | Louisiana extends shelter-in-place order while Iowa, Texas and Ohio plan to ease restrictions Overnight Defense: USS Kidd coronavirus outbreak jumps to 47 sailors | Senate Dems pan Esper's coronavirus response | US military acknowledges civilian casualties in Somalia airstrike MORE (D-Md.) announced the change in plans after initially saying the day before that the House would return next Monday, citing discussions with the Capitol physician, who warned that the Washington region has not yet flattened its number of coronavirus cases.
"We will not be meeting next week," Hoyer told reporters. "The House physician's view was that there was a risk to members that was one he would not recommend taking."
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Hoyer said that House leaders will instead wait to call members back to Washington when the next round of coronavirus relief legislation is ready for a vote. House members have gathered en masse in the Capitol twice in the last several weeks since the social distancing restrictions began to vote on bills to respond to the crisis, but only returned in session for a day at a time.
Hoyer acknowledged that it would be more "dangerous" for lawmakers to stay in Washington for extended amounts of time, like they typically do, than it is for members to be in the Capitol for a short period of time
"So under those circumstances, we have decided that we will not come back next week but we will come back very soon to pass the [next] piece of legislation. And at that point in time, we will be asking members to return to Washington," Hoyer said.
A bipartisan task force including Hoyer, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy
Kevin Owen McCarthyDemocratic House leaders plan vote next week on allowing proxy voting during pandemic House to return to DC next Monday Clyburn says panel will look at how publicly traded companies got PPP loans MORE (R-Calif.) and the leaders of the Rules and Administration committees have been discussing ways to conduct votes and committee business virtually while it remains unsafe for lawmakers and staff to gather in large groups. Hoyer said that the group would be in talks later Tuesday on potential options.
"We are going to be working in the interim on trying to facilitate committees meeting in a real way, but virtually, and provisions for the House of the Representatives to meet if in fact members cannot come back because of the virus," Hoyer said.
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The Senate is still planning to reconvene next Monday. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellOn The Money: Coronavirus exposes scars of Great Recession | House, Senate return next week for next coronavirus relief bill | McConnell state bankruptcy remarks raise questions | Small business coronavirus loan program reopens Overnight Health Care: Trump health official says US will 'easily' perform 8M tests in May | White House shifts messaging strategy on coronavirus | Louisiana extends shelter-in-place order while Iowa, Texas and Ohio plan to ease restrictions McConnell: Battle for control of the Senate will be a 'dogfight' MORE (R-Ky.) said on Monday that the upper chamber would reconvene and "modify routines in ways that are smart and safe." A McConnell spokesman confirmed on Tuesday that plans for the Senate had not changed.
Washington, D.C. remains under a stay-at-home order through at least May 15, along with many other states from which lawmakers would be traveling.
House officials established new safety protocols for the votes last week on an interim coronavirus relief bill to renew funds for the small business loan program and hospitals, as well as a measure to create a select committee to oversee the federal coronavirus response. The votes were staggered so that lawmakers voted in smaller groups based on alphabetical order.
Guidance from House officials that everyone wear face masks had mixed results. Most members of both parties wore masks, but some GOP lawmakers opted to forgo the advice.
Hoyer and Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Nancy PelosiHannity demands retraction, threatens legal action over NYT column linking him to COVD-19 death Democratic House leaders plan vote next week on allowing proxy voting during pandemic The Hill's Campaign Report: New York cancels primary amid coronavirus MORE (D-Calif.) told Democrats on a conference call on Monday that they planned to proceed with a vote on allowing a form of remote voting regardless of whether Republicans get on board with the plan.
House Democratic leaders have warmed to the idea of allowing proxy voting, in which absent members could authorize other members physically present in the Capitol to cast votes on their behalf. They initially planned to put the rule change up for a vote last week, but called it off following pushback from Republicans who argue that lawmakers should still be voting in person during the pandemic.
--This report was updated at 12:08 p.m.
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