Senate sets up key vote on the $1.2trillion infrastructure bill on Saturday after late-night talks fell apart and GOP Senator blocked bid to fast-track debate over claim package would add $256 billion to the deficit
The Senate will vote on a $1.2 trillion infrastructure package Saturday at noon, after negotiations ran late into the night on Thursday.
Senators in both parties spent all day working on a final package of amendments, but have not yet hashed out the final list to wrap up the process that has taken weeks to get to the floor.
Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., moved to file cloture which sets up a key procedural vote to begin ending debate on the bill. That vote would need 60 senators, including 10 Republicans, to sign on.
If that vote succeeds, senators would have a limited amount of time for debate followed by a series of votes before a vote on the final package.
'I believe we're very close to an agreement and see no reason why we can't complete this important bipartisan bill,' Schumer said in remarks on the Senate floor late Thursday night. 'We very much want to finish.'
If the bill is passed, it will then head to the House.
Schumer pointed his finger at Republicans for stalling the effort to fast- track the bill, which was only released on Sunday. 'The Senate has considered 22 amendments during this process and we've been willing to consider many more. In fact, we have been trying to vote on amendments all day but have encountered numerous objections from the other side.'
Republicans, meanwhile, have demanded time to adequately analyze the bill and debate amendments.
At a press conference Tuesday, Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who voted with 17 Republicans in an early vote to move forward with the bill, threatened to block its approval if Schumer ended debate too soon.
Chuck Schumer, above, pointed his finger at Republicans for stalling the effort to fast- track voting on the $1.2trillion infrastructure bill, which was only released on Sunday
At a press conference Tuesday, Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., above, who voted with 17 Republicans in an early vote to move forward with the bill, threatened to block its approval if Schumer ended debate too soon
A newly released analysis by the Congressional Budget Office found that the bill would add $256 billion to the deficit, leading Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., to block an agreement to expedite the bill's vote. The bill's drafters had originally said the bill would be paid for.
BREAK DOWN OF THE $1.2T BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE BILL
$110 billion for roads and bridges
$39 billion for public transit
$66 billion for railways
$65 billion for expanding broadband internet
$25 billion to repair major airports
$7.5 billion for the first-ever network of charging stations for electric vehicles
$21 billion to respond to environmental concerns like pollution
$73 billion to modernize America's energy grid
FUNDING
$650 billion in funding for the bill comes from existing, planned investments in the country’s roads, highways and bridges
The remaining $550 billion over the next five years requires new spending
Democrats wanted to fund the rest through tax revenues like a new gas tax
Republicans wanted to raise money through fees issues on those who use the new infrastructure
The bipartisan compromise, sure to raise heated debate, proposed using $205 billion in untapped COVID-19 relief aid and unemployment assistance that was turned away by some states
In a statement, Hagerty said: 'The CBO Congressional Budget indicated this bill will increase the deficit by at least $256 billion dollars when it was supposed to break even.
'Despite this news, I was asked to consent to expedite the process and pass it.
'I could not, in good conscience, allow that to happen at this hour-especially when the objective of the majority is to hurry up and pass this bill so that they can move quickly to their $3.5 trillion tax-and-spend spree designed to implement the Green New Deal and increase Americans' dependence on the government so I objected.'
Hagerty is not expected to vote in favor of the final bill.
Senators have already worked their way through nearly two dozen amendments and have a dozen more to go.
The 2,700 page bill would inject $550 billion in new spending into the economy over 5 years, and $650 billion is already paid for through planned investments in roads, highways and bridges. Other priorities include expanding broadband access and securing the electric grid, as well as clean water initiatives and electric vehicle charging stations.
Democrats, led by President Joe Biden, wanted to use new tax revenues, like a new gas tax, to pay for the huge chunk of the legislation. That idea was rejected by Republicans.
The GOP senators proposed raising money through fees paid by those who use the infrastructure, which Democrats rejected.
Current language of the bill repurposing around $205 billion in untapped COVID-19 relief aid, as well as unemployment assistance that was turned back by some states. It also relies on projected future economic growth.
Immediately after the Senate wraps up work on the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, Democrats are expected to begin work on another spending package that could reach a price tag of $3.5 trillion.
That bill would focus on what the White House calls human infrastructure: child care, home health care and other Democratic priorities Republicans have promised to stand against, but would be pushed through budget reconciliation, where it can pass with only a simple majority.
Progressive Democrats in the House have said they would not vote for the infrastructure bill unless the $3.5 trillion spending bill also moves forward.
'We need a reconciliation bill if we want this bipartisan bill to pass' Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said on Sunday. She said the number of Democrats willing to vote against infrastructure without movement on human infrastructure was 'in the double digits' or 'certainly more than three,' referring to the number of votes Democrats can afford to lose if the vote falls along party lines. However, at least some Republicans in the House can be expected to vote for the bill.
Schumer has said he wants to pass the $1.2 trillion bill and have framework for the $3.5 trillion bill before senators go into August recess.