Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Senators Unveil 2,700-Page $1T Infrastructure Bill; What's In It?
The Washington Post: Senate Finishing Crafting $1 Trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Proposal, Setting Delicate Debate In Motion
Senate Democrats and Republicans unveiled on Sunday a roughly $1 trillion proposal to improve the country’s roads, bridges, pipes, ports and Internet connections, setting in motion a long-awaited debate in the chamber to enact one of President Biden’s economic policy priorities. The package arrives after weeks of haggling among a bipartisan bloc of lawmakers, who muscled through late-night fights and near-collapses to transform their initial blueprint into a roughly 2,700-page piece of legislation. The fate of their labors now rests in the Senate, where proponents of infrastructure reform have little margin for error as they race to adopt the sort of bill that has eluded them for years. (Romm, 8/1)
Politico: Senate Negotiators Finalize Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Sunday evening took the next procedural step to move the legislation forward, predicting it would pass the chamber in a “matter of days.” But first it will need to go through an arduous amendment process. “It’s been decades since Congress passed such a significant standalone investment and I salute the hard work done here by everybody,” Schumer said. “Given how bipartisan the bill is and how much work has already been put in to get the details right, I believe the Senate can quickly process relevant amendments.” (Levine, 8/1)
The Hill: Senators Introduce Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill In Rare Sunday Session
Senators unveiled a $1.2 trillion, eight-year infrastructure bill during a rare Sunday session after negotiators worked through the weekend. The 2,702-page bill, spearheaded by Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and a larger group of roughly two dozen negotiators, is substantially narrower than the multitrillion-dollar plan envisioned by President Biden earlier this year but includes a wide range of funding for roads, bridges, transit, broadband and water. (Carney, 8/1)
What's included in the infrastructure plan? —
AP: It's In And It's Big: Senate Unveils $1T Infrastructure Bill
A key part of Biden’s agenda, the bipartisan bill is the first phase of the president’s infrastructure plan. It calls for $550 billion in new spending over five years above projected federal levels, what could be one of the more substantial expenditures on the nation’s roads, bridges, waterworks, broadband and the electric grid in years. (Freking and Mascaro, 8/2)
The Hill: READ: The $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Investment And Jobs Act
A bipartisan group of senators on Sunday unveiled the finalized legislative text of a $1.2 trillion, eight-year infrastructure bill. The 2,702-page measure is substantially narrower than the multi trillion-dollar plan envisioned by President Biden earlier this year but includes a wide range of funding for roads, bridges, transit, broadband and water. (8/1)
And senators count the votes —
Politico: Susan Collins: Infrastructure Bill Has Enough Republican Support To Pass In Senate
Sen. Susan Collins predicted Sunday that the bipartisan infrastructure package will have enough Republican support to pass the chamber this week. "I think we will be able to lay down the bill later today and begin perhaps consideration of some amendments," the Maine Republican said on CNN's "State of the Union" ahead of senators' expected return to session Sunday afternoon. "My hope is that we'll finish the bill by the end of the week." (Tamborrino, 8/1)
Politico: Manchin: No Guarantee Reconciliation Package Will Pass
Sen. Joe Manchin would not guarantee Sunday that a Democratic-led reconciliation package would garner the necessary votes for passage, even as he predicted the bipartisan infrastructure package would pass the Senate this week. "I can't really guarantee anybody," the moderate Democratic senator from West Virginia said on CNN. "And I have not guaranteed anybody on any of these pieces of legislation. Would we like to do more? Yes, you can do what you can pay for. This is paid for, our infrastructure bill is all paid for." (Tamborrino, 8/1)
