Congressional leaders near agreement on spending compromise

Leaders in Congress from both parties said they’re on the cusp of settling on a $1.3 trillion spending bill to avoid a government shutdown this weekend after lawmakers reached key compromises during overnight talks.

The plan would include $1.6 billion for border security, including money for fencing and levees at the U.S.-Mexico border but not the solid wall sought by President Donald Trump, a GOP lawmaker and congressional aides said. The compromise also adds a provision to require stricter reporting by federal agencies to the database for gun-buyer background checks as well as $21 billion for infrastructure projects and an additional $4 billion to combat opioid addiction.

“We feel like we’re in a very good place” House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin said after meeting Wednesday morning with the other leaders in Congress from both parties.

The U.S. Capitol building is reflected in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. Capitol building is reflected in Washington, D.C.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York and his House counterpart, Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, echoed the sentiment. “I think we will present to our members something they can comfortably support,” Pelosi said.

Vote Schedule

The full details of catch-all bill are expected to be unveiled later Wednesday. The House plans to vote on it Thursday under a waiver of rules that normally would require a vote to be delayed another day, a GOP lawmaker said. The spending measure likely will be the last major piece of legislative business before November congressional elections.

Current government funding runs out at the end of the day Friday. Congress may still have to pass a stopgap funding bill to keep the government operating until the overall spending measure gets final approval.

Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky are expecting to rely on Democrats to help pass the bill over the objections of some Republican conservatives who object to higher spending levels that are at the center of the deal as well as other provisions.

Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican who is chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said that is was “troublesome” that leaders were trying to push it though the House a day after releasing the bill. “If they’re going to waive the three day rule, then there is not a single member of congress that can actually read it."

Higher Spending

The measure would increase spending on the military by $80 billion and on domestic programs by $63 billion over previous budget limits set out in the bipartisan budget agreement that ended a February shutdown. In addition to the $1.2 trillion in overall funding that was agreed to in February, the military would receive $71 billion in war funds not subject to budget caps.

One of the biggest obstacles to reaching the agreement was the status of funding for a Hudson River tunnel between New York and New Jersey. Advocates, mainly Democrats and Republicans representing the two states, argued it is one of the most important infrastructure projects in the U.S. But Trump has insisted on removing money for the project, known as Gateway, from the spending plan.

The latest agreement would omit language steering money to the Gateway project, although the project could access about half the funds supporters are seeking — as much as $541 million — through other accounts, one congressional aide said. Additional funding would be available to the project through Amtrak and grants that don’t require approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the aide said.

Background Checks

Negotiators agreed to include a measure backed by Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas that would close gaps in the existing federal background check system to better spot criminal records of would-be gun buyers. It was first proposed after a mass shooting at a Texas last year and gained momentum after the massacre at a Florida high school last month.

The bill would contain funding to combat Russian interference in this year’s elections, the aide said. A separate Republican aide said the measure would provide more than $600 million to build a new rural broadband network.

Also included is a modification to the new tax-cut law passed last December that was sought by some agricultural groups, according to one aide. The current law contains a provision that promoted sales to farm co-ops at the expense of grain companies.

But a plan supported by Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee to help stabilize insurance premiums on Obamacare’s troubled exchanges is likely to be left out of the broad spending deal. Attempts to get an agreement collapsed over Democratic objections to abortion-funding restrictions demanded by Republicans.

Collins suggested that Democrats refused to accept a compromise to use the health-care issue in November elections.

“It is discouraging because the message it sends to me and to the American people is that there is very little interest in actually solving problems,” she said.

One aide said the legislation won’t strip funding from Planned Parenthood, which provides abortions and other women’s health services, or from cities that shield undocumented immigrants from deportation. It would bolster Democratic priorities including TIGER infrastructure grants, which would be tripled to $1.5 billion, while sparing the Environmental Protections Agency from the 30 percent cut that Trump requested, that aide said.

While lawmakers worked on the spending measure, prospects for other major legislation — including a farm bill, an overhaul of the Dodd-Frank banking law and an infrastructure package — have worsened over the last week. An overhaul of aviation regulation planned for the summer is unlikely to produce major changes.

— With assistance from Billy House

Bloomberg News
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