(PBS NewsHour) — House members want to make it public before midnight Tuesday so they can vote Thursday and technically claim it meets their “three-day rule,” which calls for bills to be made public for three days before a vote. In practice, so long as lawmakers release a bill before midnight, they count it as one day under the rule.
It is both the largest bill of the year and one of the most difficult to cover.
The omnibus — derived from the Latin word meaning “for all” — appropriations bill will likely be 1,000 or more pages. But the bill’s length is not what makes it especially tricky to pass. Instead, it’s the fact that the bill is still being written, even though Congress must pass it by Friday in order to avoid a government shutdown (or having to pass another short-term funding bill). Here’s what we are watching:
Guns. The bipartisan “Fix NICS” bill, which would strengthen the current background check system, could be included in the omnibus. But conservatives have added a road block, saying they want a national concealed carry law to be added to the bill as well.
The border wall. President Donald Trump wants funding for his border barrier, but so far it appears he will not get it in this bill. Democrats are insisting on a long-term fix for DACA recipients first.
Health care and abortion. A bill to fund the so-called “cost-sharing reduction” subsidies (thank you Washington for that mouthful!), which the president ended last year, is on the ropes because of a debate over whether anyone using those subsidies should be able to purchase a plan that includes abortion coverage. Currently patients with Obamacare subsidies can buy such a plan, but they must pay for the abortion coverage portion of it out of pocket.
The Gateway tunnel. Advocacy groups and lawmakers in New York and New Jersey have been working for years to start building a new tunnel under the Hudson River to improve transit in the region. (The current century-old tunnels under the river are aging fast). The omnibus was going to include some funding for that project, but Trump firmly opposes it, which has created a standoff between the White House and Republicans from the Northeast who support the project.
And there’s much more. Opioid crisis funding; new resources to fight wildfires; a fix to help thousands of farm companies; minor league baseball salaries; and which agencies see big budget increases, among other issues.This bill will likely be the last big piece of legislation to come out of this Congress. (Yes, it’s only March, but it is an election year.)
One final thing to watch: when the bill is released. House members want to make it public before midnight Tuesday so they can vote Thursday and technically claim it meets their “three-day rule,” which calls for bills to be made public for three days before a vote. In practice, so long as lawmakers release a bill before midnight, they count it as one day under the rule. So Wednesday would be day two. And then any point on Thursday would count as the third day.
Under this plan the Senate would vote Friday — with lawmakers crossing their fingers that Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., does not object as he has to similar bills in the past. If he does, he can push the bill past the Friday deadline and force a shutdown, as he did last month.
By Lisa Desjardins, Correspondent – Posted on Mar 20, 2018