The Senate will convene at 3:00 P.M. and is expected to spend the week working on the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes $369 billion in energy security and climate investments and allocates $64 billion to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies for two years, bringing total new spending to $433 billion. The tax reforms in the bill are forecast to raise $739 billion in revenue. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) and West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin (D) announced the agreement on the legislation late last week. Leader Schumer said the Senate will vote on the bill this week, once the parliamentarian completes the process known as the “Byrd Bath,” in which she reviews the package to ensure that all provisions in the measure are related to the budget, per reconciliation rules. Then the chamber will then hold a “vote-a-rama,” a process that allows Republicans to offer amendments.
For this to work, Democratic leadership needs to firm up the support of Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) as they are looking to pass the measure through budget reconciliation, which allows lawmakers to skip the 60-vote legislative filibuster and pass bills by majority vote. With the chamber split 50-50, Democrats need all members on board to trigger a tie-breaking vote from Vice President Kamala Harris. The most likely sticking point for Sinema is the carried interest tax loophole, which the Schumer-Manchin deal would close. The tax preference allows asset managers to pay a 20 percent capital gains tax rate on income that is earned through managing profitable investments. Closing it would raise about $14 billion over the next decade. Closing the loophole would force money managers to pay the same tax rate on their compensation as other professions do. Currently, their income can be taxed at a lower rate of up to 23.8 percent, while income is typically taxed at up to 37 percent.
The Senate on Monday is also slated to hold another vote on the Sgt. 1st Class Heath Robinson Honoring our PACT Act, which would expand health care eligibility for the 3.5 million veterans who served following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and were exposed to toxic burn pits. The measure, however, hit an unexpected hurdle last week, after a group of Senate Republicans blocked the bill citing unfounded budgetary concerns. Twenty-five Republicans who previously voted in favor of the legislation changed their stance, bringing the vote to 55-42 — five short of clearing a legislative filibuster.
Finally, today the Senate will consider the nomination of Elizabeth Wilson Hanes, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The House already recessed on Friday for August and is scheduled to return for votes on Tuesday, September 13th. If the Senate passes the Inflation Reduction Act, the House will likely come back very briefly next week to take it up.
