A bipartisan group of senators reached a deal on a proposal that would cost about $1 trillion, CNBC reports.
A group of five Republicans and five Democrats reached a deal that would provide $974 billion over five years or $1.2 trillion over eight years to revamp transportation and water systems.
The deal only includes $579 billion in new spending, repurposing unspent money from the coronavirus stimulus bill passed in March.
Biden had proposed a $1.7 trillion deal over eight years. He had asked the group to provide a proposal including at least $600 billion in new funding.
The bipartisan group began negotiations after Biden broke off talks with West Virginia Republican Shelley Moore Capitol, who offered less than $400 billion in new funding.
No tax increases:
The lawmakers said in a statement that the proposal “would be fully paid for and not include tax increases.”
It’s unclear how the deal would be funded but both sides have suggested “user fees” like gas taxes to help pay for the cost. The White House has said it would not agree to increasing the gas tax or implementing an electric vehicle mileage tax.
White House spokesman Andrew Bates said that “questions need to be addressed, particularly around the details of both policy and pay fors, among other matters.”
“Senior White House staff and the Jobs Cabinet will work with the Senate group in the days ahead to get answers to those questions, as we also consult with other Members in both the House and the Senate on the path forward,” he said.
Progressives worry about bipartisan plan:
Progressive lawmakers have urged Biden repeatedly to drop negotiations with Republicans and pass an infrastructure bill with a simple majority using the budget reconciliation process.
Multiple progressives this week said they would not vote for a bill that excludes funding to tackle climate change.
“The White House and Democratic Congress need to hold strong on real meaningful bold substantial climate provisions that President Biden proposed in his American Jobs Plan,” said New Mexico Sen. Martin Heinrich. “There is little appetite in our caucus for an infrastructure plan that ignores the greatest crisis, the most existential crisis that we face.”
Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey tweeted, "No climate, no deal.”
