The House and Senate are in session this week.

On behalf of FreedomWorks’ activist community, I urge you to contact your representative and ask him or her to support the Stop Settlement Slush Funds Act, H.R. 732, introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.). The bill would require the Department of Justice to spend settlement dollars on victims or send settlement dollars to the general fund of the Treasury to be appropriated by Congress.

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) indicated Wednesday that he plans to bring the House Judiciary Committee’s justice reform package to the floor of the lower chamber for a vote. He did not, however, offer a timetable for action, nor did he indicate which specific bills would be part of the package.

The House Judiciary Committee is poised to take up several bills dealing with justice reform. Among the bills scheduled for markup on Wednesday are the Sentencing Reform Act, sponsored by Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), and the Criminal Code Improvement Act, introduced by Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.). FreedomWorks has released letters of support for both bills.

The House of Representatives has already adjourned for the August recess. The Senate is expected to finish up its business this week before members leave Washington. The recess will not be a quiet one for members. They are gearing up for several tricky legislative initiatives and battles when they return in September, among which will be justice reform.

The House Judiciary Committee announced the formation of a criminal justice reform initiative that will examine various pieces of legislation that would address issues including over-criminalization, sentencing reform, and prison reform.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), spurred on by impassioned words from President Obama, is itching to enact stricter internet regulations next year. But there is a growing resistance among Republican lawmakers that could stop the agency in its tracks.