Senator Tom Udall filled us in on two bills he's sponsoring on Capitol Hill this session.
The first, S. 772, would implement AMBER Alert procedures on tribal lands. The measure was introduced by Arizona Senator John McCain in response to the death of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike, who was abducted in the Navajo Nation near Shiprock in May 2016; the AMBER Alert for Ashlynne was not issued until she had been missing nearly a day.
The second of Udall's sponsored bills, the "No Hearing, No Vote" Act, would require that any legislation entered into the budget reconciliation process—that's a fast-track procedure typically meant for approving budget and tax tweaks—undergo public hearings before going to the Senate floor for a vote. Udall's bill, co-sponsored with fellow New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich, targets the GOP's upcoming "Trumpcare" bill, which is slated to be passed through reconciliation.