���ϳԹ���

A bipartisan group of senators is closing in on a $579 billion infrastructure deal after agreeing to pay for it in part by delaying a Trump-era Medicare regulation, a key Democratic senator said July 22.

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers on July 6 publicly endorsed President Joe Biden’s $579 billion infrastructure deal with a group of Republican and Democratic senators, giving the compromise fresh momentum at the start of a crucial month for the administration’s agenda.

President Joe Biden’s prospects for passing a major infrastructure bill through Congress with bipartisan support — seen unlikely in the wake of his Democrat-only pandemic-relief package in March — are now rising, though disagreements over funding still could scrap a deal.

House lawmakers have requested $14.9 billion in spending on earmarked projects for a transportation bill set to be a centerpiece of President Joe Biden’s economic agenda.

House Republicans voted to allow their members to request dedicated-spending projects, known as earmarks, following that same move by Democrats, in a positive sign for President Joe Biden’s hopes for a bipartisan infrastructure bill.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren said her proposed wealth tax on households worth more than $50 million could help pay for investments in infrastructure, child care and health reforms as part of President Joe Biden’s plan to “Build Back Better” after the coronavirus pandemic that has disproportionately hit low-income families.

The Senate passed a one-week government spending bill and President Donald Trump signed it Dec. 11, averting a government shutdown.

The Senate on Sept. 29 voted 82-6 to clear a procedural vote on the stopgap spending bill needed to prevent an Oct. 1 shutdown of the federal government.

The House is aiming to vote the week of Sept. 21 on a stopgap spending bill to keep the government open when the fiscal year ends Oct. 1, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said.

House Democrats on June 18 pitched a $1.5 trillion plan to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure and urged President Donald Trump to immediately engage in negotiations on how to pay for it.