February 12, 2010
J.R. Reskovac
Sarah Strup
Economy
Senate Majority Leader Reid has elected to push a scaled-back, four-part jobs bill instead of a broader package.
The bill Reid wants to consider will include a payroll tax break from Senators Schumer (D-NY) and Hatch (R-UT); an extension through this year of federal surface transportation programs; an expansion of the Build America Bonds program of tax-credit bonds for state and local infrastructure projects; and an expiring extension through this year for higher expensing limits for small businesses included in last year's stimulus bill. Reid said it will be paid for but did not detail how.
This first bill will not include a number of items from a draft $85 billion package released Thursday morning by Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus and ranking member Chuck Grassley, including a renewal of $31 billion worth of expired tax breaks that was considered an olive branch to Republicans. But Democrats have not been able to get broad Republican support yet for the Finance package and are under pressure to show some initial effort to address jobs.
Senate Minority Whip Kyl Thursday afternoon indicated Republicans would support the draft Finance bill, just as Reid was presenting the smaller bill to Democrats. But Minority Leader McConnell later declined to endorse the Finance draft, calling it "a work in progress."
Kyl said an agreement between Baucus and Grassley for consideration of bipartisan estate tax reform would have included a unanimous consent agreement that would set up a vote on their plan to lower the estate tax by increasing the exemption threshold from $7 million to $10 million per couple and lowering the top rate to 35 percent from 45 percent. Their plan, strongly opposed by some Democrats, already passed the Senate this year in a nonbinding vote.
Reid said the Senate will turn to the tax extenders after the Presidents Day break, just separately from this jobs bill.
Reid's bill does not include other items in the $85 billion Finance draft, including three more months of unemployment benefits and COBRA health subsidies for laid-off workers and a physician payment fix.
Absent also from that draft is a one-year extension for USA PATRIOT Act provisions expiring February 28, a five-year reauthorization of satellite television law and $1.5 billion in farm disaster aid. Reid said he made the decision to do the scaled-back bill before Thursday's policy lunch. "I just wanted to make sure that they were supportive of what I was doing, and they are very supportive," Reid said of fellow Democrats.
Washington Outlook
A summary of the Democratic jobs agenda is available by clicking here.
The next weekly legislative update will be February 26th when Congress returns from their Presidents Day recess.
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Sarah Strup
Capitol Decisions
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