State of Play
The House and Senate are in session this week.
Congress is working to pass appropriations measures FY26 ahead of a next government shutdown deadline on January 30.
Driving the News
It's a big week for financial policy. The Trump Administration’s decision to open a criminal investigation into Jay Powell over allegations he misled Congress about Federal Reserve building renovations has ignited a major political backlash, raising alarms that the White House is threatening the central bank’s independence to influence monetary policy.
The investigation comes as the Senate Banking Committee is preparing to markup crypto market structure legislation, causing concern for some Members, including House Financial Services Chair French Hill (R-AR), that the investigation into Powell is an unwarranted distraction.
Powell forcefully rejected the probe as a pretext for political pressure, prompting bipartisan concern on Capitol Hill and warnings from lawmakers that Fed nominations could be blocked to protect the institution’s autonomy.
Three Things to Watch in Tech
FCC Chair Carr versus Congress, Part Deux: Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr and other FCC Commissioners, will testify before the House Energy and Commerce Communications and Telecom Subcommittee this week, where Democrats are expected to press him again over controversial remarks threatening broadcasters that aired Jimmy Kimmel’s show and broader First Amendment concerns.
Democratic Members have called for Carr’s resignation and sought an inspector general probe, while Carr has defended enforcing broadcasters’ public-interest obligations and recently broke precedent by saying the FCC is not independent of the White House.
Republicans, including E&C Chair Brett Guthrie, say the hearing will focus on broadband expansion, spectrum policy, and national security, but Democrats are poised to spotlight alleged political pressure on media companies. The hearing is expected to largely mirror that held in Senate Commerce last month.
Kratsios Defends AI Action Plan: The House Science Research and Technology Subcommittee will hold a hearing Wednesday with OSTP Director Michael Kratsios to receive updates and progress on the Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan issued last summer.
The Action Plan garnered attention from Members for its emphasis on deployment of AI in the federal government and fostering public private partnerships to advance AI innovation.
On the Dem side, Members are expected to press Kratisos on the Administration’s executive order on federal preemption of state AI laws, and implementing a moratorium to prevent state AI regulations from taking effect.
Senate Commerce Tackles Kids’ Screen Time: The Senate Commerce Committee is once again looking at kids’ online safety, this time tackling the amount of time kids are looking at screens. Chair Ted Cruz (R-TX) said that the hearing will look to examine how early and excessive exposure to smartphones, tablets, and laptops is affecting children’s development and mental health, as well as how parents and schools can better manage screen time amid widespread device use in classrooms.
The hearing will also spotlight Cruz’s bipartisan push with Brian Schatz to advance the Kids Off Social Media Act, which would restrict social media access and algorithmic amplification for minors and limit the use of taxpayer-funded devices for social media in schools.
Witnesses are expected to include academic and clinical experts on youth psychology and cognition, as well as a parent-focused digital wellness advocate, offering perspectives on the scientific evidence of screen impacts and practical strategies to help families and educators protect kids online.
The hearing is the latest on congressional efforts to legislate on online safety protections for children, yet tensions remain between the House and Senate on different versions of pivotal legislation, the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA).
🏛️ Tech Hearings
The House Energy and Commerce Energy Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Protecting America’s Energy Infrastructure in Today’s Cyber and Physical Threat Landscape” - Tuesday, January 13 at 10:00 AM EST
The House Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Defense through Offense: Examining U.S. Cyber Capabilities to Deter and Disrupt Malign Foreign Activity Targeting the Homeland” - Tuesday, January 13 at 10:00 AM EST
The House Financial Services Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence Subcommittee held a hearing on “Delivering for American Consumers: A Review of FinTech Innovations and Regulations” - Tuesday, January 13 at 10:00 AM EST
The House Education and Workforce Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee holds a hearing on "Who's Watching the Kids? How Employers, Innovators, and Parents are Solving America's Child Care Crunch" - Tuesday, January 13 at 10:15 AM EST
The House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Maintaining American Innovation and Technology Leadership” - Tuesday, January 13 at 2:00 PM EST
The House Foreign Affairs Committee holds a hearing on “Winning the AI Arms Race Against the Chinese Communist Party” - Wednesday, January 14 at 9:30 AM EST
The House Science, Space, and Technology Research and Technology Subcommittee holds a hearing on “Assessing America's AI Action Plan” - Wednesday, January 14 at 10:00 AM EST
The House Education and Workforce holds a hearing on "Building an AI-Ready America" - Wednesday, January 14 at 10:15 AM EST
The House Energy and Commerce Communications and Technology Subcommittee hotels a hearing on “Oversight of the Federal Communications Commission” - Wednesday, January 14 at 10:15 AM EST
The Senate Commerce, Science, and Technology holds a hearing to examine the impact of technology on America's youth - Thursday, January 15 at 10:00 AM EST
🗓️ Upcoming Events
The Government Executive Media Group and ThunderCat Technology - Discussion on "Zero Trust and the Data Challenge" - Tuesday, January 13 at 9:10 AM EST
The Washington International Trade Association - Virtual Discussion on "20 Trends for 2026” - Tuesday, January 13 at 10:00 AM EST
The Federal Communications Bar Association (The Tech Bar) - Virtual Discussion on "Keeping Pace with Privacy and AI Developments" - Tuesday, January 13 at 12:00 PM EST
Georgetown University Institute for International Science and Technology Policy - Virtual Discussion on "The National Security Risks of AI Chatbots" - Wednesday, January 14 at 9:30 AM EST
The Atlantic Council - Launch Event of Report on "A three-billion-person opportunity: An untapped global market for financial services" - Wednesday, January 14 at 10:30 AM EST
The Brookings Institution - Virtual Discussion on "A new direction for AI and students: Findings from the Brookings Global Task Force on AI and Education" - Wednesday, January 14 at 11:00 AM EST
