Democrats moved toward a vote on the social safety net and climate plan, as five House holdouts wanted to see the Congressional Budget Office score.
The House moved toward a vote on President Joe Biden ‘s social safety net and climate plan Thursday night after a key analysis said it would slightly add to budget deficits over a decade. Following the release of the Congressional Budget Office estimate, House Democrats teed up a final vote on the legislation as soon as Thursday night. A handful of centrist House Democrats wanted to see the nonpartisan CBO’s projection of how the Build Back Better Act would affect long-term deficits before they voted for the plan. The $1.7 trillion bill would increase the budget deficit by $367 billion over the years 2022 to 2031, according to the CBO. The topline figure does not include estimates for revenue raised by increased IRS enforcement of tax laws. The Treasury Department has contended the provision will generate another $400 billion and pay for the plan. The CBO estimated it would lead to only $127 billion more in net revenue, which would leave the bill’s spending roughly $250 billion short of being fully offset. That would put it approximately in line with the CBO’s estimated deficit impact for the bipartisan infrastructure law Biden signed earlier this week with the support of Republicans and centrist Democrats alike.
