With Lucas confirmed and Panuccio next, EEOC quorum expected soon

The Senate confirmed Acting Chair Andrea Lucas for a second term on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on July 31, and the Senate HELP Committee voted Brittany Panuccio out of committee on July 24. With Kalpana Kotagal as the sole remaining Democratic commissioner, the EEOC will finally have a quorum once Panuccio is confirmed.

Lucas has quickly implemented President Trump’s agenda by withdrawing EEOC support for some transgender cases, issuing letters demanding large law firms define their DEI programs, and playing a role in the administration’s campaign against elite universities. When questioned during the Senate HELP Committee, Lucas told the Democratic Senators that the EEOC is an executive branch agency answerable to the president even though she had asserted the EEOC was an independent agency in 2021.

PWFA constitutionally enacted

The U.S 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in State of Texas v. Bondi et al. held Congress lawfully approved the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) as part of a $1.7T spending package during the COVID-19 pandemic despite lacking a physical quorum.

The lower court held that the House of Representatives failed to reach a quorum with only 201 members present and other members voting remotely. The appeals court found that the Constitution didn’t require House members to be physically presence to have a quorum.

Update on 200 Days of Action to Protect Religious Freedom