Senate Fails To Invoke Cloture on $14B Financial Assistance Package for Big Three Automakers
Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a $14 billion financial assistance package for the Big Three automakers after negotiators failed to reach an agreement on certain provisions in the legislation, CQ HealthBeat reports. The Senate voted 52-35 to end debate on the package, eight votes less than the 60 required to invoke cloture (Schatz/Mattingly, CQ HealthBeat, 12/11).
On Wednesday, the House approved a $14 billion assistance package. The package, which includes a number of conditions that the automakers would have to meet to receive financial assistance, would protect health care and other benefits for one million retirees and their dependents.
Last week, officials for the automakers presented to lawmakers individual proposals that included requests for as much as $34 billion in financial assistance, as well as revisions to their obligations to a fund that will provide health benefits to United Auto Workers retirees. Under contracts negotiated last year, the automakers agreed to contribute about $56.5 billion to a voluntary employees' beneficiary association, which UAW will manage. The VEBA, which will take effect in 2010 and remain operational for 80 years, will reduce retiree health benefit liabilities for the automakers by about $100 billion. In addition, UAW last week agreed to allow the automakers to delay their contributions to the VEBA and make other concessions to help the companies obtain financial assistance from the federal government (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 12/11).
Before the Senate vote, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Senate Banking Committee Chair Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) met with representatives from the automakers and UAW in an effort to reach an agreement on an assistance package, but they remained divided over a provision that would have required the union to accept wages and health and other benefits equal to those provided by foreign automakers with U.S. operations (Goode/Friedman, CongressDaily, 12/12). The package would have required UAW to accept the provision by March 31, 2009, but the union sought to move the deadline to 2011. In addition, the package included a provision that would have required UAW to accept half of the contributions from the automakers to the VEBA in stock (Shepardson/Trowbridge, Detroit News, 12/12).
After the cloture vote failed, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said that the Senate likely will not take any additional action on an assistance package for automakers this year. He said that President Bush could allow the automakers to receive a share of the $700 bailout for Wall Street firms enacted in October (CongressDaily, 12/12). Several lawmakers said that they might ask Bush to make such a move (Thomas/Hirschfeld Davis, AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 12/12).
