U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. (Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM)

For the first time in eight years, Democrats hold a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives after the midterm elections, but any of their bills coming out of the House could stall in the still Republican-controlled Senate. On Wednesday , Margaret E. Krawiec, David B. Leland and Ivan A. Schlager, attorneys at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom published a blog post on how the Democratic House majority could dramatically change priorities for congressional oversight investigations and other activities that impact companies.

Benjamin Ebbink, of counsel at Fisher & Phillips in Sacramento, and Richard Meneghello,  a partner at the firm in Portland, Oregon, also co-authored a report on what employers can expect with the new Congress in 2019 with respect to labor and employment laws.

Below are some key takeaways based on both reports.

1. Immigration reform will most likely remain at a stalemate. Ebbink wrote that, despite immigration being a hot-button issue, he doesn't think reform bills will pass both houses. “There isn't much in terms of reform that folks should be anticipating,” Ebbink wrote. He said, despite immigration being important to industries such as agriculture, he wouldn't expect much to happen. Even if  immigration reform passes in the House, it would most likely stall in the Senate, he said.
2. If any employment-related bill is going to  make it to  the president's desk, it could be paid leave. Ebbink and Meneghello wrote in the Fisher Phillip's post that paid family leave has support from both sides of the aisle. “There are a lot of people talking about paid family leave,” Ebbink said in a phone interview. “That could potentially be one area where there is some discussion.” Ebbink said there has been support for paid family leave from everyone including President Donald Trump. In his post on the Fisher Phillips website, he said that some Republicans in the House and Senate have floated the idea of such a program. In August, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, introduced a bill to allow new parents to draw early Social Security benefits for paid leave. That bill, however, has already received criticism from the left, according to Politico, and would most likely not be supported by Democrats in the House. “At least some in both parties have expressed a desire for a paid family leave law,” David Schwartz, a partner at Skadden's labor and employment group in New York said in an email. “However, the proposals to date take vastly different views on how to fund the leave, and a law on this topic coming out of the new Congress may be unlikely.”
3. The fate of the Affordable Care Act is still pending. Despite not being able to get rid of so-called Obamacare when Republicans controlled both legislative houses, the ACA could still be undone at least in part. The Fisher Phillips post states that Texas v. Azar, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, will likely be decided soon. Whatever, the ruling, the post says, the case will likely end up in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and then it could end up yet again before he U.S. Supreme Court. In September, Judge Reed O'Connor of the U.S. District Court for the the Northern District of Texas heard oral arguments over the ACA, according to The Los Angeles Times and questioned the attorneys involved on which provisions of the ACA should stand.
4. The Trump tax cuts could be called into question. With a majority of Democrats in the house, the Trump tax cuts would most likely be called into question, according to the Skadden post. The Trump administration lowered the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent. President Trump also has indicated in the past that he wants to cut the corporate tax rate even more in the future. “As part of their efforts, Democrats may turn to corporations for documents and information and set public hearings where CEOs are called to testify and disclose the amounts saved as a result of such tax cuts,” the Skadden post says.
5. With a Democratic majority in the House, expect more requests for reports from the Government Accountability Office.  Democrats may continue to make frequent use of the GAO to investigate not only Trump himself but also certain industries, according to the Skadden report. Because of the expected uptick in GAO reports that could lead to investigations, companies should take steps to prepare for such investigations, even if those inquiries are industrywide and not specific to a particular company. “A company might assess whether to proactively make changes to policies, procedures or business practices that might address Democratic concerns, as Congress frequently has used these investigations to force industry wide changes,” according to the post.

Also Read: Employment Law Implications After U.S. House Flips to Dems

After Midterms, Lawyers and Lobbyists Look for Opportunities in Divided Government