The Chamber of Representatives passed the Version of the Senate of the main tax and expenses package on July 3, after a discourse of record by the Democratic leader and without any modification to the changes in the Senate Bill. President Donald Trump signed the bill on July 4.
The 870 -page bill maintains the tax reductions sought in the construction industry, including an extension of the 2017 tax cuts and jobs that were otherwise due to expiration, as well as an improvement in the 199A deduction for past companies, which include most contractors.
“These are growth policies that directly support the investment, innovation and expansion of labor force, especially in the engineering sector,” said Linda Bauer Last, chairman and director of the Council of America of the Council of Anginyeria, in a statement.
The bill also includes a provision that allows project owners to quickly monitor their federal environmental reviews and approach billions of dollars for projects aligned with Trump administration priorities, including $ 46.6 billion to build border security infrastructure. Federal prisons, NASA space centers and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, would also get funding for various infrastructure improvements.
“We have an energy dominance that returns to the power of our future,” said Mike Johnson (r-). “We have a safe border to protect North -American families. We have a strong military man to restore peace through force.”
Without any modification of the houses, the legislators could not restore provisions included in their previous draft, which was eliminated by the Senate, such as a user share to the owners of electric vehicles and hybrids to help fund motorway projects.
“Although she was stripped of the Senate version, this room’s effort was a welcome effort and for some time to address the [Highway Trust Fund’s] Decline of the user rate, “said Nile Elam, Vice President of Affairs of the National Aschalt Pavement Association, in a statement.
The bill terminates the financing of initiatives not favored by the Trump administration such as slowing down climate change. Wind and solar energy projects, in particular, lose tax credits and groups in the sector say that the change threatens to eliminate jobs and increase electricity costs. Jason Grumet, director general of the American Clean Power Association, said in a statement that the passage of the bill “is a dramatic swing in federal policy, disturbing the good -faith investments of North -American companies who are feeding our economy and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs.”
“Legislation restricts energy production, increases the prices of North -American families and families, and challenges the reliability of our existing power network,” added Grumet.
House democratic leader Hakem Jeffries (NY) spent more than eight hours talking about the bill and highlighting the proposed amendments that would have reduced cuts to benefits programs, such as Medicaid and SNAP. Millions of Americans are expected to lose benefits as a result of the bill.
“The economy is being made of track and nothing has been done to reduce the high cost of life,” said Jeffries.
With most in the House and the Senate, Republicans were able to elaborate the legislation without the contributions of the Democrats. The vote of 218-214 saw that two Republicans join the Democrats to oppose the bill. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (PA.) Echo the worries of Democrats for Medicaid cuts, saying that in a statement that the version of the Senate Bill “did not fall from our standard.”
Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY.) He wrote on social media that voted against the bill due to his expected impact by increasing the deficit. The non -partisan congressional budget office estimates that the bill reduces $ 4.5 trillion, but only reduces $ 1.2 trillion spending and will add $ 3.3 trillion to the deficit for a decade.
Maya Macguineas, chair of the non-profit group committee for a responsible federal budget, compared the increase in debt to a “high” that will crash.
“The long-term health of our economy, American families and our children will be worse due to this debt-funded bill,” he said.
