Democrats release $3.5TRILLION budget proposal they can pass without GOP support including climate initiatives, social welfare, green cards for immigrants and tax cuts - but leave out plans to raise the debt limit
Senate Democrats fired the starting gun on their vast social spending plans on Monday morning, unveiling a $3.5 trillion budget of funding hikes for economic and environmental programs, setting up an autumn showdown over President Joe Biden's domestic policy ambitions.
The 92-page measure lays the groundwork for legislation that over a decade would pour mountains of cash into their key priorities.
That includes money for education, health care and environmental programs plus tax breaks for families, funded in large part by tax increases on the wealthy and on corporations.
Senate Republicans immediately dismissed the plans as '92 pages of reckless tax and spending.'
Senate Democrats unveiled a budget resolution Monday that maps $3.5 trillion in spending boosts and tax breaks aimed at strengthening social and environmental programs, setting up an autumn battle over President Joe Biden's domestic policy ambitions
Democrats can use Senate rules to pass their budget without Republican support, but will have to balance progressive and moderate demands to hold together their wafer-thin majority
Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has warned that the U.S. is in danger of defaulting on its debt if the federal ceiling is not raised by Oct 1. The budget resolution does not seek to raise the debt ceiling, setting up a showdown with Republicans if Democrats try to push a separate bill through Congress hiking the maximum
Democrats' budget framework allocates billions of dollars to Senate committees to begin drafting proposals for final bill
Agriculture: $135 billion for conservation, drought, and forestry programs to reduce carbon emissions and prevent wildfires; clean energy investments; agricultural climate research; Civilian Climate Corps funding, child nutrition and debt relief
Banking: $332 billion for housing programs, including down payment and rental assistance and community investment
Commerce: $83 billion for technology and transportation; coastal resilience and oceans; funding for the National Science Foundation.
Energy: $198 billion for clean electricity; rebates to weatherize and electrify homes; financing for domestic manufacturing of clean energy and auto supply chain technologies; federal procurement of energy efficient materials; climate research
Environment and Public Works: $67 billion for low-income solar and climate-friendly technologies; clean water affordability and access; EPA climate and research programs; federal investments in energy efficient buildings and green materials
Finance: At least $1 billion in deficit reduction. 'This will provide the Committee with flexibility to make investment, revenue and offset decisions consistent with the policy recommendations,' the instructions state. Offsets to include: Corporate and international tax reform; taxing high-income individuals; IRS tax enforcement
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: $726 billion for universal pre-K for 3 and 4-year olds; child care; tuition-free community college; investments in HBCUs, MSIs, HSIs, TCUs, and ANNHIs; increase the maximum Pell grant award; School infrastructure, student success grants, and educator investments; Investments in primary care; pandemic preparedness
Homeland Security: $37 billion for electrifying the federal vehicle fleet; electrifying federal buildings; improving cybersecurity infrastructure; border management investments; investments in green materials and resilience
Judiciary: $107 billion for lawful permanent status for qualified immigrants and border security
Indian Affairs: $20.5 billion for native health, education, housing, energy and climate programs and facilities
Small Business: $25 billion for small business access to credit, investment, and markets
Veterans Affairs: $18 billion for upgrades to VA facilities
The resolution is the second part of a two-pronged strategy to pass their top domestic priorities, as the Senate gets closer to passing a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Taken together, Democrats hope the bills offer a progressive reshaping of government
But to succeed, they will have to overcome ferocious Republican opposition and find the sweet spot between the demands of their own progressive and moderate factions.
In a letter to colleagues setting out the plan, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he would move immediately to the budget resolution once the infrastructure bill was passed.
'At its core, this legislation is about restoring the middle class in the 21st Century and giving more Americans the opportunity to get there,' he said.
'By making education, health care, child care, and housing more affordable, we can give tens of millions of families a leg up.'
A separate memo claims the costs can be met in full by tax increases, savings from federal health care programs and long-term economic growth.
Democrats plan to use special budget rules that will allow them to avoid the threat of a Republican filibuster to pass the bill.
But it omits raising the debt limit, setting up a showdown with Republicans who have made clear they will not support such a move.
The resolution calls for creating free pre-Kindergarten for three- and four-year-olds and two years of free community college; extending tax breaks for children and some low-income workers; and establishing paid family and sick leave.
It also paves the way to giving legal status to millions of undocumented immigrants but, in a measure designed to placate moderate Democrats, allocates money to strengthen border security.
Schumer's letter turns over the objectives to Senate committees to draw up a bill and sets September 15 as the deadline for recommendations.
His framework sets out: $107 billion for the Judiciary Committee, including instructions to address 'lawful permanent status for qualified immigrants'; $135 billion for the committee on Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry, to tackle forest fires and reduce carbon emissions among other things; $332 billion for the Banking Committee to invest in public housing, the Housing Trust Fund, and in housing affordability; $198 billion for the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, to use on priorities including clean energy development.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who chairs the Senate Budget Committee, outlined the progressive case for the measures. He said it represented the most consequential piece of legislation for working people since the New Deal
'For too many decades, Congress has ignored the needs of the working class, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor,' he said.
'Now is the time for bold action. Now is the time to restore faith in ordinary Americans that their government can work for them, and not just wealthy campaign contributors.'
Working out how to pay for for the proposals will fall in large part to Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee.
Its chair, Sen. Ron Wyden, said: 'To restore fairness to our tax code and pay for these once-in-a-generation investments, the Finance Committee has been working on a menu of options for the caucus to consider.
'Our proposals will fall into four categories: multi-national corporations, the wealthiest individuals, enforcement against wealthy tax cheats and savings from other programs.'
Democrats promise the measures will not increase taxes on families earning less than $400,000, and say their plans will be paid for by increases on the wealthy and corporations
Sen. Bernie Sanders, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said the budget marked the most consequential piece of legislation for working people and children since the New Deal
Republicans immediately dismissed the budget proposal as '92 pages of reckless tax and spending'
Republicans have already made clear their opposition.
Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell dismissed the plans as a 'reckless taxing and spending spree.'
They will be powerless to stop progress of the plans as Democrats plan to use Senate 'reconciliation' rules to pass their plans.
Instead Democrats may face procedural challenges.
Legislation passed by reconciliation must meet strict rules to ensure its measures relate directly to the budget - which could mean immigration reform, for example, gets stripped from the bill.
And by omitting any proposal to raise the federal debt ceiling in the budget Democrats are setting up a showdown with Republicans, who have made clear they will not supply the 10 votes needed to increase the limit.
The federal government has already reached the borrowing limit.
Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has warned it must be increased by Oct. 1 to avoid the catastrophic impact of a default.
On Monday morning she issued a statement giving cover to Democrats for not using a reconciliation bill to increase the debt, saying instead it should be done on a bipartisan basis.
'The vast majority of the debt subject to the debt limit was accrued prior to the Administration taking office,' she said.
'This is a shared responsibility, and I urge Congress to come together on a bipartisan basis as it has in the past to protect the full faith and credit of the United States.'
THE DEMOCRAT 'TOP LINES' IN THE $3.5T BUDGET PROPOSAL
FAMILIES: the major families plan programs proposed by Biden are funded in the HELP and Finance instructions.
CLIMATE: puts US on track to meet President Biden’s 80% electricity and 50% economy-wide carbon reductions through the Agriculture, Banking, ENR, EPW, Finance, Commerce, HSGAC, and Indian Affairs instructions.
INFRASTRUCTURE AND JOBS: invests in game-changing infrastructure projects and jobs programs not included in the BIF through the Banking, Commerce, EPW, Finance, HELP, HSGAC, Judiciary, Indian Affairs, Small Business and Veterans Affairs instructions.
HEALTH CARE: builds on Democrats’ goal of providing universal health care to all Americans in the Finance and HELP instructions.