House and Senate lawmakers have reached an agreement on a $1.1 trillion spending and tax cut deal that will fund the government through 2016 and lift the decades-old ban on exporting crude oil.
House Speaker Paul Ryan announced the deal to Republican lawmakers in a closed-door meeting late Tuesday. A vote on the legislation could come as early as Friday in the House, followed by consideration in the Senate.
The spending bill does not include many of the policy riders Republicans were seeking. It excludes a provision that would essentially halt the resettlement of Syrian and Iraqi refugees in the United States, and excludes language stripping federal money from Planned Parenthood.
“A lot of us feel like we didn’t get what we wanted, but we got some stuff that we did want,” Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., said as he left the meeting.
But Ryan told the GOP conference that they should pass both bills even though they do not include everything Republicans were seeking.
Republicans said they were pleased with some of the provisions in the deal. In addition to lifting the crude oil export ban, the deal delays for two years the so-called Cadillac tax on expensive insurance plans, and the medical device tax. Both taxes are meant to pay for the costs associated with Obamacare.
It also includes some victories for Democrats. It excludes a provision that would essentially halt the resettlement of Syrian and Iraqi refugees in the United States, and excludes language stripping federal money from Planned Parenthood. And to counter the GOP language ending the oil export ban, the deal also includes language on green energy tax credits for Democrats.
The House will first take up the spending package in two bills.
The fiscal 2016 spending legislation, or the omnibus bill, lifts the oil export ban and delays the Cadillac tax. It’s expected to pass with both Democratic and Republican support, but many conservatives will likely to vote against it because it does not include the Syrian refugee or Planned Parenthood language.
The second tax bill extends dozens of popular tax breaks and includes language delaying the medical device tax. It also makes permanent a number of research and development tax breaks, which Republicans had been seeking.
“Paul Ryan made a compelling case for us to support it,” Rep. Reid Ribble, R-Wis., said as he left the meeting. “He feels it is time to start fresh, that we increase our hand and have better negotiating positioning if we have strong Republican support on stuff this year. With division, it’s much harder to get Republican policy passed going forward.”
Democrats are likely to vote against the tax bill, but enough Republicans support it to ensure passage.
Pelosi told reporters Tuesday Democrats are seeking tax cuts for renewable energy, such as wind and solar power. Democrats also oppose the size of the tax cut package. “Until you see in writing what all of this is, you really can’t make any comment or any commitment about it,” Pelosi said Tuesday. “So, we’ll see.”
