Speaker Kevin McCarthy decided overnight to make changes to his US debt limit bill, bowing to the demands of a small number of Republican lawmakers who had threatened to tank the measure when it comes up for a House floor vote this week.
(Bloomberg) — Speaker Kevin McCarthy decided overnight to make changes to his US debt limit bill, bowing to the demands of a small number of Republican lawmakers who had threatened to tank the measure when it comes up for a House floor vote this week.
The move came just hours after McCarthy declared to reporters he was not entertaining any changes to the measure, which would raise the US debt limit by $1.5 trillion.
The House Rules Committee amended the bill to restore three tax breaks for biofuels and for two others allows them to be claimed for investments made between August 2022 and April 19, 2023, a key demand of six or more Midwestern lawmakers who had declared opposition to the measure.
In order to balance the loss of savings from the new compromise, the bill makes certain cancellations of unspent Covid-19 funding permanent.
The amendment also accelerates new work requirements in Medicaid so that they take effect in 2024 rather than 2025, a key demand of Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida and other conservatives who had threatened to vote “no.” The amendment also contains language clarifying that one of the goals of the food stamps program is to increase work by participants.
While House leaders had hoped to vote on the bill on Wednesday, it does not appear on the day’s calendar, making a Thursday vote more likely. It is not yet clear if McCarthy has the votes for the bill even with the changes. Some lawmakers like Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Andy Biggs of Arizona and Tim Burchett of Tennessee had been opposed because the level of cuts was too small.
Overall, the bill aims to trim $4.8 trillion in spending over a decade in part by cutting discretionary spending by $130 billion next year and capping its growth at 1%. The bill, a grab bag of conservative measures, would ease energy regulations, end clean-energy tax breaks, rescind unspent Covid-19 funds and impose new work requirements on adults without children who receive Medicaid and food stamps.
The bill fully restores credits for carbon oxide sequestration; incentives for biodiesel, renewable diesel, alternative fuels and second generation biofuel incentives. The partial restoration applies to the sustainable aviation fuel credit and the clean fuel production credit.
McCarthy has said he hopes passage of the bill will pressure President Joe Biden into talks over raising the US debt ceiling as a possible US payment default looms as soon as June without congressional agreement to raise it.
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