Influence Alley

After Hurricane Sandy shut down Capitol Hill for two days, life should be back to normal on Wednesday with federal agencies open for business, the Office of Personnel Management announced this afternoon.

The decision to return to work is generally left up to individual offices, some of whom are back today, and chiefs of staff are likely to follow the lead of Metro, which will commence regular service tomorrow.

D.C. escaped the worst of the highly anticipated storm, and the Capitol suffered no damage and did not lose power. A tree fell on the Senate side, according to Architect of the Capitol spokeswoman Eva Malecki, but besides scattering branches, it caused no damage. 

On Tuesday, as the damage was surveyed and Metro ran on a delayed schedule, the House and Senate postponed their pro-forma sessions from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.