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How they voted: NC congressional votes for the week ending Dec. 18

A look at how North Carolina members of Congress voted during the previous week.

Posted 2025-12-19T23:10:44+00:00 - Updated 2025-12-20T13:00:00+00:00

Targeted News Service

Here's how North Carolina members of Congress voted over the previous week.

Along with roll call votes, this week the Senate also passed a bill (S. 550) to provide for the equitable settlement of certain Indian land disputes regarding land in Illinois; the FDA Modernization Act 3.0 (S. 355), to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to publish a final rule relating to nonclinical testing methods; the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act (S. 612), to authorize grants to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations; the ENFORCE Act (S. 3021), to enhance enforcement with respect to material depicting obscene child sexual abuse or constituting child pornography.

House votes

REVIEWING NATURAL GAS PIPELINES: The House has passed the Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews Act (H.R. 3668), sponsored by Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., to designate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as sole lead agency for environmental reviews of planned natural gas pipelines and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, and set out other stipulations for pipeline and terminal reviews. Hudson said the bill "would guarantee we protect the environment, ensure we protect public health, and lower energy costs by speeding up energy projects through much-needed reforms to the permitting of interstate natural gas pipelines." An opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., said: "Instead of letting FERC work collaboratively with other agencies, as the process does now, this bill makes FERC the adversary of other agencies by forcing it to breathe down every other agency's neck." The vote, on Dec. 12, was 213 yeas to 184 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Murphy R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

CONGRESSIONAL AWARDS: The House has passed the Congressional Award Program Reauthorization Act (S. 284), sponsored by Sen. Cynthia M. Lummis, R-Wyo., to reauthorize through fiscal 2028 the Congressional Award Program for giving achievement awards to teenagers and young adults. A supporter, Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., said: "This program has helped generations of young people set goals, serve others, and push themselves to achieve more. Specifically, young Americans have to set and complete rigorous personal goals focused on volunteer service, personal development, exploration, and physical fitness." The vote, on Dec. 15, was 370 yeas to 22 nays.

NAYS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th)
YEAS: Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Adams D-NC (12th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)

ARKANSAS BUILDING TRANSFER: The House has passed a bill (H.R. 3187), sponsored by Rep. J. French Hill, R-Ark., to transfer a vacant Forest Service building on one acre of land to Perry County, Arkansas, to be used by the county government. Hill said the bill "provides Perry County with a much-needed facility to expand youth development, agricultural education, and community health initiatives." The vote, on Dec. 15, was unanimous with 388 yeas.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Adams D-NC (12th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)

CUSTODY OF ALIEN MINORS: The House has passed the Kayla Hamilton Act (H.R. 4371), sponsored by Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., to change standards for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to use in determining where to house unaccompanied alien children (UACs) who are in the agency's custody, with an emphasis on possible hazards posed by and to the child. Fry said: "By enshrining in law rigorous background check requirements, this will ensure UACs will not be placed with criminals or child abusers." An opponent, Rep. Luz M. Rivas, D-Calif., said: "It is a bad bill that will harm vulnerable children, do nothing to fix our immigration system, and embolden Trump to continue wreaking havoc in our communities." The vote, on Dec. 16, was 225 yeas to 201 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

POWER PLANT OPERATING ORDERS: The House has passed the Power Plant Reliability Act (H.R. 3632), sponsored by Rep. H. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., to direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to issue an order to keep a power plant operating for as long as five years if the plant is found to be necessary for electrical grid reliability, and exempt the plant from government environmental laws and regulations. A supporter, Rep. Gary J. Palmer, R-Ala., said the bill "enhances existing authority under the Federal Power Act to protect the bulk-power system from premature retirements of baseload power and ensures more effective long-term planning for our generating resources." An opponent, Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., said it "will raise energy prices for American families by forcing them to pay for outdated polluting plants that are poisoning their air and water." The vote, on Dec. 16, was 222 yeas to 202 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

ACTION AGAINST TERRORIST GROUPS: The House has rejected a bill (H. Con. Res. 61), sponsored by Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, D-N.Y., that would have required the cessation of military action against presidentially designated terrorist organization in the Western Hemisphere barring a declaration of war or specific Congressional authority. Meeks said recent lethal attacks on boats thought to be carrying drugs lacked Congressional oversight or authority, and Congress should "not give away our power to someone who would like to just be an authoritarian." An opponent, Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., said "the president has every bit of Article II authority to defend the United States of America from these imminent threats." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 210 yeas to 216 nays.

NAYS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
YEAS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th)

INTERVENING IN VENEZUELA: The House has rejected a bill (H. Con. Res. 64), sponsored by Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Mass., that would have required the cancellation of U.S. combat activity against Venezuela in the absence of Congressional authorization. McGovern said the Trump administration has failed to give Congress evidence of "some imminent military threat from Venezuela, nothing that would justify the hostilities that the president is engaged in right now in building up troops" close to Venezuela. A bill opponent, Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., said it "is not stopping drug running. It is not stopping terrorism. It is not stopping the president. It is just stopping the president from acting decisively before Americans die." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 211 yeas to 213 nays.

NAYS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
YEAS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th)

GRID RELIABILITY REVIEWS: The House has passed the Reliable Power Act (H.R. 3616), sponsored by Rep. Troy Balderson, R-Ohio, to direct the North American Electric Reliability Corporation to make annual long-term reviews of electrical grid reliability, and mandate measures for ensuring that federal regulations do not impair grid reliability. Balderson said the bill "strengthens federal accountability, streamlines communication, and puts in place commonsense guardrails needed to protect the bulk of the power system." An opponent, Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., said: "This bill would elevate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission above any other federal agency, give it unprecedented veto power, and transform it and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation into political actors." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 225 yeas to 203 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

HEALTH INSURANCE: The House has passed the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act (H.R. 6703), sponsored by Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa. The bill would enact a variety of measures governing pharmacy benefits, employers' insurance plans for their workers, and funding cost-sharing payments that subsidize certain individual health insurance plans. Miller-Meeks said: "This bill delivers what Americans have been asking for: lower premiums, more choices, and a healthcare system that works for them, not against them." An opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., said it would "prop up junk health insurance plans that discriminate against people and leave them hanging when they get sick." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 216 yeas to 211 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th)

MINORS AND SEX CHANGE PROCEDURES: The House has passed the Protect Children's Innocence Act (H.R. 3492), sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., to impose criminal penalties for sex change surgeries and hormonal treatments done on minors who have normal sex chromosomes and sex characteristics, and expand penalties for genital mutilation of a female minor. Greene said: "For far too long, children have been sexually exploited under the malicious falsehood of so-called gender-affirming care. Mutilating children's bodies and giving them sterilizing drugs is anything but affirming and anything but care." A bill opponent, Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif, said it "hypocritically bans safe and effective medications for an entire group of people just because of who they are, while still allowing them for everyone else." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 216 yeas to 211 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS: The House has passed the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act (H.R. 4776), sponsored by Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., to change procedures for National Environmental Policy Act reviews of planned government activity. Reviews would become more limited in scope, and judicial review would also be reduced. The vote, on Dec. 18, was 221 yeas to 196 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

REGULATING MINING: The House has passed the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act (H.R. 1366), sponsored by Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., to state that operators of mines on federal land can also use the land for activity associated with mining, and establish the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund for reclaiming former mine sites. The vote, on Dec. 18, was 219 yeas to 198 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th)

GRAY WOLF STATUS: The House has passed the Pet and Livestock Protection Act (H.R. 845), sponsored by Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., to require the reissuance of an Interior Department rule, issued in November 2020 but later vacated by a federal district court, that removed the gray wolf from its listing as an endangered and threatened species. The vote, on Dec. 18, was 211 yeas to 204 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Foushee D-NC (4th)

MEDICAID AND MINORS: The House has passed the Do No Harm in Medicaid Act (H.R. 498), sponsored by Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, to bar Medicaid payments for sex change surgeries and medical treatments done on minors who have normal sex chromosomes and other genetic characteristics, and are not facing early puberty. The vote, on Dec. 18, was 215 yeas to 201 nays.

YEAS: Harrigan R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (9th), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Harris (NC) R-NC (8th), McDowell R-NC (6th), Edwards R-NC (11th), Knott R-NC (13th), Davis (NC) D-NC (1st), Moore (NC) R-NC (14th)
NOT VOTING: Murphy R-NC (3rd)
NAYS: Adams D-NC (12th), Ross D-NC (2nd), Foushee D-NC (4th)

Senate votes

2026 MILTARY BUDGET: The Senate has agreed to a motion to agree to the House amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (S. 1071), sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, to authorize $901 billion of military and military construction spending in fiscal 2026, including a 3.8 percent pay increase for enlisted soldiers. Cornyn called the bill "critically important because it makes sure that our military has the necessary resources to achieve the missions of today and rise to the challenges of tomorrow." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 77 yeas to 20 nays.

YEAS: Tillis R-NC, Budd R-NC

NASA ADMINISTRATOR: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Jared Isaacman to be Nautical Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator. Isaacman founded and is the CEO of Shift4 Payments, a payment processing company, co-founder of Draken International, a fighter jet contracting firm; and is a pilot and near-space astronaut. A supporter, Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., said: "I am confident that he will provide the leadership that NASA needs to sustain and advance America's leadership in space." An opponent, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., cited concerns that Isaacman supported making NASA science "a service to the commercial industry, rather than continuing to serve the public." The vote, on Dec. 17, was 67 yeas to 30 nays.

YEAS: Tillis R-NC, Budd R-NC

REGULATING NUCLEAR POWER: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Douglas Weaver to be a member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the remainder of a term ending in the middle of 2026. Weaver was a senior executive for nuclear regulatory affairs at Westinghouse Electric from 2013 to 2022, after two decades at the NRC. The vote, on Dec. 17, was 71 yeas to 29 nays.

YEAS: Tillis R-NC, Budd R-NC

HEALTH POLICY PROCEDURES: The Senate has rejected a bill (S.J. Res. 82), sponsored by Sen. Angus King, ID-Maine, that would have nullified a Health and Human Services (HHS) Department rule issued this March that revoked an exemption to procedural requirements for HHS when issuing rules and regulations governed by the Administrative Procedure Act. King said the bill "protects the public's ability to know what is going on in one of the most important departments in our government and to have a chance to have a little say on those decisions." An opponent, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said the rule merely aligned HHS policy with a long-standing exemption allowed to other agencies' rules on non-public bureaucratic topics, and "it does not change the process for major regulations that impact the public." The vote, on Dec. 18, was 50 yeas to 50 nays.

YEAS: Tillis R-NC
NAYS: Budd R-NC

SLATE OF EXECUTIVE NOMINEES: The Senate has passed a bill (S. Res. 532), sponsored by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to approve, en bloc, a set of 97 executive branch nominees, including ambassadorships, military posts, and numerous state-level U.S. attorneys and other executive posts. Thune said: "I am proud of just how much we accomplished on nominations, and I look forward to continuing to get the president's team in place in the new year." The vote, on Dec. 18, was 53 yeas to 43 nays.