Worked to stop the federal government from tracking lawful long gun purchases. Congressman Forbes is cosponsoring legislation, H.R. 3814, to prohibit the Department of Justice from tracking and cataloguing the purchases of multiple rifles and shotguns along the Southwest border. The federal government has begun tracking the sale of semi-automatic weapons to law-abiding citizens. Under a policy announced last year and currently being challenged in court, the U.S. Justice Department now requires all gun dealers in the southwest to report sales of two or more of certain semi-automatic rifles to a single buyer.  The scheme, known as "Demand Letter 3," targets gun buyers in Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas. The more than 8,500 gun dealers in those states are required to report to the federal government on sales of semi-automatic rifles greater than .22 caliber and able to accept detachable magazines. Selling two or more of those "long guns" to a person within five days triggers the reporting requirement.  Congressman Forbes continues to oppose all incremental infringements on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.

Permitted the importation of historic arms from South Korea. Congressman Forbes is cosponsoring legislation, H.R. 615, to amend the Arms Export Control Act to guarantee that U.S.-made military firearms that were previously exported to a foreign government and which under that law are eligible for re-importation into the U.S. as “curios and relics,” will not be blocked from importation. This bill is a result of an Administration decision to reverse its approval of a permit to import historic M1 Garand rifles and M1 carbines that the U.S. provided many years ago to South Korea. Because the rifles had been exported under the authority of the Department of State, the department claimed authority over their importation back into the United States. Few firearms are so highly regarded for their historical significance. 

Ended out-of-date, restrictive sugar policies.  Congressman Forbes cosponsored the Free Market Sugar Act, H.R. 1385, to end federal quotas and price support programs that artificially inflate the price of sugar in the United States.  Without this legislation, American consumers and manufacturers will continue to have to pay higher prices for sugar or any product that uses sugar.  According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the American people pay much higher prices for sugar compared to the rest of the world.  At a time when millions of Americans are out of work, Congressman Forbes has cosponsored a bill that will reduce costs for families and our nation’s manufacturers. 

Supported initiatives to reform the budget process.  Congressman Forbes voted for two initiatives to reform the broken budget process in Washington.  Specifically, he supported the the Pro-Growth Budgeting Act, H.R.3582, to require that the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office begin providing a supplemental analysis of the longer-term economic impact of legislation that is estimated to have a budgetary impact of more than .25% of GDP.  The current economic model used to score legislative proposals assumes current law will remain unchanged over the course of the fiscal period and does not take economic growth into account.  Congressman Forbes also supported the Baseline Reform Act, H.R.3578, to remove the assumption that discretionary spending will increase each year by the level of inflation. 
H.R.3582 passed the House by a vote of 242-179 and H.R.3578 passed by the House a vote of 235-177.

Required that the State Department address Iran’s growing threat in the Western Hemisphere.  Congressman Forbes cosponsored the Countering Iran in the Western Hemisphere Act of 2012, H.R. 3783.  One week after the U.S. Director of National Intelligence told the Senate that Iran is now more willing to conduct an attack in the United States, it is now more important than ever that the State Department develop a strategy to address Iran’s growing presence and threatening activity in the Western Hemisphere.  Last year Congressman Forbes urged the Administration to include the Western Hemisphere in the 2012 National Strategy for Counterterrorism.  Now, in the face of DNI’s comments, it is clear that a coherent and comprehensive strategy for dealing with Iranian activity in our nation’s backyard is required. 

Worked to ensure regulatory compliance and fairness for banks. Congressman Forbes cosponsored the Financial Institutions Examination Fairness and Reform Act, H.R.3461, to improve the bank examination process regarding the increase in regulatory compliance issues for financial institutions and the fairness of the examination process since the recent financial crisis. 

Repealed an insolvent program created by new health care law. Congressman Forbes supported the Fiscal Responsibility and Retirement Security Act, H.R.1173, to repeal the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program, which established a national, voluntary long-term care insurance program for purchasing community living assistance services and supports.  In October, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that there was not a viable way to maintain the program over the long-term and would therefore not be able to implement it as part of the new health care law.
This bill passed the House by a vote of 251-157.

Provided health care providers with appropriate reimbursement. Congressman Forbes cosponsored the Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act, H.R.3269, to prohibit any multiple procedure payment reductions for CT, MRI, and ultrasound exams received by the same patient on the same day in the same setting. This legislation seeks to ensure that doctors and hospitals receive the appropriate reimbursement for the imaging procedures performed.

Offered certainty and improved safety with a long-term FAA reauthorization.  Congressman Forbes supported the Conference Report on H.R. 658, the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.  The Conference Report reauthorizes the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operations and programs for four years, from FY 2012 through FY 2015. Importantly, the bill bolsters safety measures for airlines and also reforms National Mediation Board (NMB) rules to require public hearings before any significant NMB ruling takes effect and by increasing the proportion of eligible members needed to petition for new union elections from 35 percent to 50 percent.
This bill passed the House by a vote of 248-169.

Prohibited abortion of unborn children who are capable of feeling extreme pain. Congressman Forbes cosponsored the District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, H.R. 3803, which prohibits abortions in the District of Columbia on unborn children that are beyond twenty weeks gestation, on the basis that children at this stage of development can feel pain.  The consensus among the medical community is that an unborn child can feel pain by at least twenty weeks gestation, perhaps significantly earlier. The bill contains an exception for situations in which the life of the mother is endangered.  Five states have passed similar legislation and more state legislatures are considering the measure this year.  H.R. 3803 will ensure that unborn children in the District of Columbia are spared the great pain they would experience if their  lives ended in abortion.

Opposed the removal of “God” from Air Force logo due to outside pressure. Congressman Forbes led 35 Members of Congress in sending a bipartisan letter to Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz expressing conforcern over recent news that the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) changed its logo to remove a reference to “God” after receiving complaints from the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF).  The RCO patch, like many unit patches, included a line in Latin meant to be a clever pun understood by members of the unit. The logo previously displayed the motto "Opus Dei Cum Pecunia Alienum Efficemus" (Doing God’s Work with Other People’s Money), but was altered to now read "Miraculi Cum Pecunia Alienum Efficemus" (Doing Miracles with Other People’s Money). A copy of the letter is available here.

Prohibited attendance at animal fighting events.  Congressman Forbes cosponsored the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act of 2011, H.R. 2492.  This bill makes it a crime to knowingly attend an animal fighting venture or to cause a minor to attend an animal fighting venture.  Anyone convicted of knowingly attending such an event would be fined or imprisoned for up to one year.  Congressman Forbes remains committed to protecting animal welfare and continues to support measures that strengthen our nation’s protections of animals.