Senate moves closer to passing infrastructure bill

Lawmakers moved forward on procedural votes on a bipartisan basis.

The procedural votes put the infrastructure deal on track to easily pass the Senate. Picture: AFP

The roughly $US1 trillion ($1.36 trillion) bipartisan infrastructure bill cleared a final set of procedural hurdles in the Senate, putting the legislation on track to easily pass the chamber in the coming days.

While Republicans and Democrats disagreed throughout the weekend on how to consider additional amendments to the legislation, they moved forward with procedural votes on a bipartisan basis.

On Sunday (Monday AEST) As many as 18 Republicans joined with Democrats on the various procedural motions, providing the two-thirds majority needed to block a fillerbuster, given the Senate is tied 50-50.

The legislation will face a more complicated path in the House of Representatives, where Democrat speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she wouldn’t bring it up until the Senate also passes a $US3.5 trillion anti-poverty and climate bill.

Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer is also pushing for Democrats to approve the budget outline for the $US3.5 trillion package in the coming days.

“We can get this done the easy way or the hard way. In either case, the Senate will stay in session until we finish our work. It’s up to my Republican colleagues how long it takes,” Senator Schumer said.

Republican support for the infrastructure bill remained robust even after congress’s nonpartisan scorekeeping found that it would add $US256 billion to the deficit over 10 years. The estimate contradicted bill negotiators’ claims that its cost was fully covered with savings and new revenue. But that finding from the Congressional Budget Office did inflame existing opposition from some Republicans to the bill, complicating efforts to quickly wrap-up the amendment process.

A spokesman for Republican senator Bill Hagerty said earlier last week that he “cannot in good conscience agree to expedite a process immediately after the CBO confirmed that the bill would add over a quarter of a trillion dollars to the deficit.”

Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell voted in favour of the procedural vote and called for the Senate to consider additional amendments.

“The American people need roads, bridges, ports, and airports to build their businesses, build their families, and build their lives,” he said. “Republicans and Democrats have radically different visions these days, but both those visions include physical infrastructure that works for our citizens.”

The bill provides $US550 billion in new funding on top of money authorised for existing federal infrastructure programs. Of that $US550 billion, $US65 billion is dedicated to expanding access to broadband, $US110 billion will go toward rebuilding bridges and roads, and $US55 billion is aimed at water infrastructure. Repurposing Covid-19 aid and delaying a Trump-era Medicare rebate rule are among the sources of funds for covering the cost of the plan.

Among the amendments lawmakers were grappling with were those related to a measure that seeks to raise money through tougher tax enforcement of cryptocurrency transactions. Duelling groups of senators have proposed amendments seeking to clarify how the bill defines a broker, which the legislation would require to report gains reaped to the Internal Revenue Service.

Democrat senator Mark Warner said he had made changes to the cryptocurrency amendment that he has proposed with Republican Rob Portman and Democrat Kyrsten Sinema. Democrat senator Ron Wyden, one of the authors of the other amendment, said talks were continuing on the issue.

The Wall Street Journal