Skip to main content

New top story from Time: Infrastructure, Social Spending and Debt Ceiling: A Guide to Congress’ Pivotal Week

https://ift.tt/3kI9ccS

It’s crunch time on both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue.

Both the White House and Democrats in Congress are scrambling to pass two bills that will form the cornerstone of President Joe Biden’s legislative legacy: a $1 trillion infrastructure bill that would expand internet access and repair the country’s aging physical infrastructure like roads and bridges; and a $3.5 trillion social spending bill that includes authorized paid family leave and expanded healthcare and childcare provisions.

For months, Democrats have touted a “two track” system, planning to pass both bills simultaneously to appease both the moderate and progressive wings of the party. But they only have a clear path to sending these bills to Biden’s desk if they can remain unified, and cracks are widening in their coalition. With narrow margins of control in Congress, they can’t afford any defections in the Senate and can only afford three in the House. Right now, the party doesn’t have the votes to pass either package.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]

A key sticking point: they have not agreed on a final cost of the social spending bill. The more progressive members of the party want the number to stay at $3.5 trillion, while more moderate members are uncomfortable with such a high number. Progressives are refusing to vote for the bipartisan infrastructure bill until they receive a commitment about a vote on the social spending bill, concerned that moderates may withdraw support without the incentive of an infrastructure bill. But the social spending bill is nowhere near ready for a vote. As a result, both bills are currently in limbo, and Biden’s agenda hangs in the balance.

That’s not all that’s on Congress’ plate this week. The government will shut down on September 30th unless Democrats and Republicans reach an agreement on funding. And Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said that if Congress does not raise the debt limit by mid-October, the U.S. could default, which would have drastic economic implications.

Here is a guide to the pivotal week ahead: what is in these bills, and the obstacles currently blocking their passage.

Infrastructure

What it is: $1 trillion in spending—including $550 billion in new spending—focused on improving “hard infrastructure” like roads and bridges. The bill also allots billions of dollars to help the country become more resilient to threats connected to climate change.

Read More: The Senate Just Passed a Massive Infrastructure Bill. Here’s What’s in It

Status: The bill passed the Senate with bipartisan support on August 10, but it has yet to pass the House of Representatives. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has vowed that the bill will be passed this week, but the timeline has already slipped. Pelosi had initially imposed a deadline to vote on the infrastructure bill on Sept. 27, but she told her colleagues over the weekend that she now intends to bring the bill to the floor Monday and hold a vote on September 30.

The hold-up: In August, a group of nearly a dozen moderate Democrats, led by New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer, threatened to withhold their support for a procedural vote on the reconciliation blueprint unless they were guaranteed a vote on the infrastructure package. With Democrats only holding a majority in the House by a three-vote margin, the moderates wielded significant leverage. Pelosi told them that if they voted for the blueprint, she would bring the infrastructure bill to the floor for a vote on September 27th.

Problems: Progressives are now saying that if the infrastructure package comes for a vote this week as planned, they will refuse to support it unless a reconciliation bill is also brought to the floor for a vote. “It cannot pass,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, told reporters on September 24. “I don’t grand-stand; we just don’t have the votes for it,” she continued, predicting that over 50 members of her caucus would vote no on the infrastructure bill without the social spending bill alongside it. And while lawmakers in the House are working to get the reconciliation bill across the finish line, it is not yet ready to come to the floor.

Reconciliation

What it is: $3.5 trillion in new spending for programs like paid family leave, universal pre-k, two years of free community college, and investments in infrastructure and other policy tools designed to reduce U.S. emissions. The programs would be paid for by raising taxes on corporations and Americans making over $400,000, and it would mark the most significant expansion of the nation’s social safety net in decades.

Status: Both the Senate and the House passed a resolution setting the $3.5 trillion top-line number along party lines in August. Committees are now drafting the actual text of the bill.

Problems: There are several obstacles to passing this bill, even though Democrats are moving it through a budget process called reconciliation that will allow them to push it through along party lines. The biggest problem is the price tag. Even though all Senate Democrats voted for the resolution in August, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema say they oppose $3.5 trillion as the final number. But progressives, who initially envisioned a $6 trillion package, insist they have already compromised and do not want to cut any more of the programs. As committees work on the final text, there are also disputes over specific policy areas like healthcare. Progressives are adamant that the final package should include a Medicare expansion that would include vision, dental and hearing aid benefits. But moderates say the party should prioritize shoring up the Affordable Care Act by permanently reducing the price of health insurance premiums. These disagreements about overall cost and specific policy provisions are threatening to derail the entire plan.

Government funding and the debt ceiling

What it is: The government will shut down at the end of the week if lawmakers do not reach an agreement to either extend the deadline or fund the government for the coming fiscal year. If lawmakers do not reach an agreement on raising the debt ceiling by mid-October, the country will default.

Status: The House passed a continuing resolution earlier this month that would fund the government through December and prevent default. But it is expected to fail in the Senate, where it needs at least ten Republican votes.

Problems: Republicans support a continuing resolution to fund the government, but they refuse to vote for any piece of legislation involving the debt ceiling. They argue the debt is a problem Democrats should deal with on their own as they prepare trillions of dollars in new spending. So if Democrats try to include raising the debt ceiling in the government funding bill and Republicans refuse to support it, the government could shut down.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Powered Scooters Charge City’s Transportation Recovery

Powered Scooters Charge City’s Transportation Recovery By Jason Hyde The SFMTA is releasing its next round of Powered Scooter Share permits on July 1. Scooters remain a sustainable mode of travel and a complement to Muni and public transit service as the city recovers from the pandemic and San Franciscans begin to travel more. The SFMTA’s Powered Scooter Share Program is essential in ensuring that shared scooter operations support the city’s economic recovery in a safe, sustainable, and equitable way.  The SFMTA received four submittals for the permit program and will issue permits to two operators : Spin and Lime. Permits will be in effect for a one-year term, with the option to extend for another year at the discretion of the SFMTA based on compliance with various program metrics. While the new permit program does not set a limit on the number of scooters each operator may deploy, it does limit the overall citywide fleet size at 10,000. Starting at a base of 2,000 scooters...

Smarter Traffic Signals Prioritize Transit and People

Smarter Traffic Signals Prioritize Transit and People By Robert Lim Have you ever wondered how traffic signals could better balance the needs of all road users, whether driving, bicycling, walking or taking Muni? The SFMTA is rolling out its Connected Corridor Pilot this month to use transit platform and traffic signal sensor data to inform signal timing adjustments. The pilot also aims to collect information to support transit efficiency and street safety improvements.  Traffic engineers use signal timing adjustments as a tool to prioritize the flow of travel in specific directions or for different travel modes – Muni, people walking or driving – to meet the changing demands of the road network across different timepoints in a day. The Connected Corridors Pilot seeks to push the envelope of innovation by investing in advanced technologies, funded through a U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) grant. These tools will better position the city to serve the potential future ne...

New Muni Service Changes Start Saturday, August 19

New Muni Service Changes Start Saturday, August 19 By Clive Tsuma 28R 19th Avenue will run on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. starting Monday, August 21.  Back to School  With SFUSD students returning to school August 16, many families who rely on Muni to get to school will see service increase after school as part of the new schedule. Because Muni vehicles often become crowded during morning peak hours and sometimes pass up stops when there is not enough room for more riders, families are encouraged to plan their trips ahead of time and hop on Muni early to make sure students get to school on time.  With every public school in the San Francisco Unified School District being served by at least one Muni route , students can expect extra Muni service on the first day of the school this fall and continue providing service throughout the school year. While the Muni service changes won’t be implemented until August 19, school tripper service will be offered starting Au...

Watch San Francisco’s Bike Network Bloom

Watch San Francisco’s Bike Network Bloom By Eillie Anzilotti From just a few stretches of scattered lanes in 2013, San Francisco’s protected bike network now stretches like a green web connecting more and more of the city. See how much has changed over the last eight years:   In just the blink of an eye, San Francisco has become one of the most bike-friendly cities in the U.S. To date, San Francisco has 464 miles of bikeways, including: 42 miles of protected bike lanes 78 miles of off-street paths and trails 21 miles of buffered bike lanes 139 miles of striped bike lanes As we’ve expanded the network of safer bicycle routes through San Francisco, more people are choosing to ride bicycles for recreation and transportation every year. Since 2006, travel by bicycle has grown by 184 percent citywide. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, bike counts hit an all-time high: in 2019, approximately 52,000 bicyclists were observed at 37 locations during peak periods, a 14 percent incre...

Geary Boulevard Improvement Project Update

Geary Boulevard Improvement Project Update By Amy Fowler Geary Boulevard is a critical east-west arterial and one of the busiest bus corridors in North America, connecting downtown San Francisco to the Richmond District. The SFMTA has been busy working on the second phase of planned improvements on Geary, called the Geary Boulevard Improvement Project , to improve Muni’s 38 Geary bus service and address traffic safety between 34th Avenue and Stanyan Street.  The project is building on the success of the Geary Rapid Project , which was recently completed on time and on budget and has already shown promising travel time savings on the eastern half of the Geary corridor.    Last fall, we asked neighbors in the Richmond about their priorities for transit, safety and driving issues on Geary via pop-up events on the corridor and a Virtual Open House. Thanks to input from over 600 community members , the SFMTA has used this feedback to draft the detailed, block-by-bloc...

Muni Highlights in 2021: More Service to More Destinations

Muni Highlights in 2021: More Service to More Destinations By Jonathan Streeter Our goal for Muni in 2021 was to match the service we offer with the changing travel patterns of an unpredictable era, as San Franciscans grappled with a second year of the COVID-19 pandemic.  To achieve this, we expanded on the core routes that formed the nucleus of our early 2020 pandemic network by adding and improving service in key areas throughout San Francisco. We focused on access in neighborhoods where essential workers live, as well as on adding service in busy corridors and even creating new lines. At the beginning of the year, even with our reduced schedule, 91% of San Franciscans were within two or three blocks of a Muni stop. This included 100% of residents in San Francisco’s neighborhoods identified by the Muni Service Equity Strategy . By summer 2021, we added enough additional service so that 98% of San Franciscans were within two or three blocks of a Muni stop. To the relief of ma...

FOX NEWS: Man built ‘hillbilly hot tub’ in backyard out of boredom: 'It is not very efficient'

Man built ‘hillbilly hot tub’ in backyard out of boredom: 'It is not very efficient' He decided to build his very own budget hot tub using an old, pre-formed pond base he had dug out from his garden. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2Y7FilX

Get a Text, Not a Tow

Get a Text, Not a Tow By Erica Kato Today we are pleased to announce “Text Before Tow,” a first-of-its-kind program where customers can sign up to receive a text message notification prior to having their vehicle towed. This pilot program applies to four categories of tows: (1) parking more than 72-hours (2) blocked driveways (3) construction zones and (4) temporary no-parking zones such as special event or moving trucks. These categories represent 27% of all vehicles towed in 2020, approximately 12,500. It is important to note that peak-hour tow-away lanes, hazards, yellow or white zones and all other violations are not included.   To enroll a vehicle, customers need to complete a short online form to register their license plate and phone number. When a customer’s vehicle is about to be towed, they will receive a text notifying them that a tow truck has been dispatched. Note: Vehicles will still receive a citation for the violation from Parking Control Officers (...

Planning for Additional Muni Service in early 2022

Planning for Additional Muni Service in early 2022 By Erin McMillan The 15 Bayview Hunters Point Express waits for person crossing the street Over the past couple of months SFMTA staff have been reaching out for feedback on three alternatives for adding 10% more bus service in early 2022. And we heard you! SFMTA needs to focus on restoring service to provide key connections for people with disabilities and seniors, and that’s what we plan to do. We also heard that there is demand for improving frequency of high-ridership Muni lines to address crowding and wait times, which we'll do with any additional funds. While we plan for Muni service in early 2022, the city mandate that employees show proof of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment will go into effect November 1. We are proud that 82% of SFMTA employees are now fully vaccinated. But if hundreds of our employees are still unvaccinated as of November 1 and   are put on leave or terminated, ...

New top story from Time: At Thanksgiving, Biden Seeks Unity as Trump Stokes Fading Embers of a Campaign

https://ift.tt/3q4cU1i WILMINGTON, Del. — On a day of grace and grievance, President-elect Joe Biden summoned Americans to join in common purpose against the coronavirus pandemic and their political divisions while the man he will replace stoked the fading embers of his campaign to “turn the election over.” Biden, in a Thanksgiving-eve address to the nation, put the surging pandemic front and center, pledging to tap the “vast powers” of the federal government and to “change the course of the disease” once in office. But for that to work, he said, Americans must step up for their own safety and that of their fellow citizens. “I know the country has grown weary of the fight,” Biden said Wednesday. “We need to remember we’re at war with the virus, not with one another. Not with each other.” President Donald Trump, who has scarcely mentioned the pandemic in recent days even as it has achieved record heights, remained fixated on his election defeat. He sent his lawyer Rudy ...