Good Reasons to Weigh in for the Lame Duck Session

The next several months represent an opportunity for advocates to disseminate their message on Capitol Hill, in advance of what may be the most productive months of the legislative year: the so-called lame duck session, from the November election through the end of December.

There are five key initiatives that Congress needs to tackle by the end of 2012, and each will have a significant impact on a wide range of industries. The Bush tax cuts are set to expire on December 31, 2012. Unemployment insurance, the payroll tax cut and the sustainable growth rate, or medicare “doc fix,” are set to expire on December 31st. The research and development tax credit and other tax provisions are expiring, and it is likely that the President will need to request another debt ceiling increase before the end of the year, which will spark heated debate.

Finally, the automatic, across-the-board budget cuts known as “sequestration” that were included in the Budget Control Act of 2011 will be triggered in 2013, resulting in $1.2 trillion in cuts to be split between security and other programs.

As important as the next few months are for laying the groundwork for the lame duck session, they are equally important in terms of preparing for 2013. Exactly which issues get tabled until then will in part depend on who wins the election, but in any case lawmakers will want to tackle major initiatives early in the session. Advocates that did not make themselves part of the process in 2012 risk being left behind next year.