What’s in the Senate Version of the Big Beautiful Bill?

his article was originally published by The Epoch Times: What’s in the Senate Version of the Big Beautiful Bill?

Senators on Monday morning will begin a marathon vote series dubbed a “vote-a-rama” to pass their version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, with the vote expected to go late into the day, possibly wrapping up sometime on Tuesday.

The legislation, resulting from weeks of intra-party and bicameral negotiations among House and Senate Republicans, would implement sweeping changes to U.S. policy and funding over a 10-year window in order to carry out President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” agenda.

Trump hopes for final passage of the bill by July 4. The Senate earlier approved advancing the legislation in a 51–49 vote, in which Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Thom Willis (R-N.C.) joined Democrats in voting against the procedural measure.

The vote series on the mammoth bill, clocking in at over 940 pages, comes after a 16-hour reading of the package beginning-to-end on the Senate floor as requested by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).

The Congressional Budget Office projected in updated estimates released on June 27 that the reconciliation budget bill will increase the deficit by around $3.25 trillion, touching on practically every area of American policy and the budget—albeit within the confines set by the filibuster-proof reconciliation process being used to advance the legislation.

Here are the main components of the bill.

2017 Tax Cuts Extended

The centerpiece of the legislation is its extension of the tax cuts initially included in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 during Trump’s first term in office.

That bill slashed marginal tax rates across the board, with most brackets seeing around a 2 to 4 percent cut. If these cuts aren’t extended, tax rates will return to their pre-2017 levels at the end of fiscal year 2025 on Sept. 30—an eventuality that Republicans are anxious to avoid.

Child Tax Credit Boosted

The bill would boost the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 to $2,200, as well as extend the credit permanently.

Reduced Taxes on Overtime, Car Loans, Tips

The bill would implement some of Trump’s core campaign promises on tax policy, reducing taxes on tips, overtime pay, and car loans.

The bill would allow deducting the first $25,000 in income from tips, deducting up to $12,500 in income from overtime pay for single filers or up to $25,000 for joint filers, and deducting up to $10,000 for car loan interest on American-made vehicles.

$6,000 Social Security Deduction for Seniors

Instead of Trump’s “no taxes on Social Security,” the bill would allow seniors to deduct $6,000 of their Social Security income, with that amount reducing once income passes $75,000 for single filers or $150,000 for joint filers.

Single filers who make $175,000 or more, or joint filers with an income of over $250,000, will not be eligible for the deduction.

Funding Immigration and Border Security

The legislation would dedicate $150 billion towards immigration enforcement in line with some of the core promises Trump made on the campaign trail.

That includes nearly $30 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency largely responsible for carrying out Trump’s mass deportation operation, alongside $13.5 billion in grants for state and local governments who assist with the effort. The bill allocates $45 billion for detention of illegal immigrants.

Another $46.5 billion is dedicated for the construction of a border wall along the U.S.–Mexico border.

The funding will cover through the end of fiscal year 2029.

Defense

The bill would appropriate $157 billion towards defense—$29 billion would go towards enhancing U.S. maritime capabilities and shipbuilding, $25 billion is slated for munitions, and $25 billion would be for Israel’s Golden Dome missile defense project.

The funding will cover through the end of fiscal year 2029.

Clean Energy Tax Credits

Several clean energy tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act are being cut, beginning as early as this year.

The electric vehicle tax credit would end on Sept. 30. Other clean energy projects, including hydrogen, wind, and solar, would need to be online by either Dec. 31, 2027, or Jan. 1, 2028, depending on the type of project.

The bill would tax new wind and solar projects for using specific foreign-made components.

Medicaid and Rural Hospitals

The bill would seek to reduce Medicaid spending by imposing an 80-hour monthly work requirement for able-bodied adults to receive the program.

It also reduces the “provider tax”—the rate at which states tax hospitals and doctors to pay for their Medicaid programs—from 6 percent to 3.5 percent in states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Ten states that didn’t expand their programs will see no changes.

To offset fears that these changes would harm rural hospitals, the bill allocates $25 billion to support such sites.

SNAP Cuts

The bill would, for the first time, require states to contribute to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments, commonly known as food stamps. The amount would be variable based on a state’s payment error rate but would fall between 5 and 15 percent.

It would also increase states’ share of administrative costs to 75 percent, up from their current 50 percent rate.

$5 Trillion Debt Ceiling Increase

The bill would increase the U.S. debt ceiling by $5 trillion. This provision is one of the most pressing items in the bill as the Treasury approaches a default sometime in the coming months.

Paul and House conservatives have been outspoken in their opposition to such a steep increase in the debt limit.

$40,000 SALT Cap

One of the most divisive issues in crafting the bill has been the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction, which was capped at $10,000 in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The Senate bill will increase that cap to $40,000 annually, increasing by 1 percent for five years instead of the 10 years initially sought by its supporters as a compromise. Beginning 2030, the cap will return to $10,000.

SALT allows tax payers to deduct a portion of their state and local taxes from their federal taxable income. The program is controversial with conservatives, who view it as favoring blue state taxpayers more than those in comparably low-tax red states.

However, House moderates like Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) have made an increased SALT cap a redline to win their vote.

Education Policies Tweaked

The bill would make several tweaks to federal education policy.

It would reduce Pell Grant eligibility for high-income students and students with a full-ride. It proposes two federal student loan repayment plans, including one traditional repayment plan and one income-based repayment plan.

Additionally, it would tax college and university endowments at a variable rate—either 1.4 percent, 4 percent, or 8 percent—based on their wealth.

Restrictions on Regulating AI

A provision in the bill would require that states refrain from regulating artificial intelligence (AI) for 10 years as a condition to receive their portion of a newly-created $500 million broadband fund.

What Was Cut

The Senate’s nonpartisan referee, parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, ruled against many provisions ineligible for passage under the filibuster-proof process in earlier Senate committee drafts of the legislation. Had they not been cut, Republicans would need 60 votes to pass the reconciliation bill.

Those provisions included one empowering states to enforce immigration law, multiple provisions relating to the federal workforce, and a provision financially rewarding cost-cutting measures by agencies.

Sen. Mike Lee’s (R-Utah) proposal to sell off federal lands, which caused a firestorm of controversy online, was also left out.

Another proposal to cut the $200 excise tax, and regulations on silencers and certain types of firearms was also ruled ineligible for the reconciliation process.

The AI policy wrapped into the final text was also altered from an earlier version, which didn’t make the prohibition a condition of receiving broadband funding.

Republicans also removed a measure dubbed a “revenge tax“ that would have let Trump impose retributory taxes on foreign companies from nations that tax U.S. firms. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that after negotiations, the provision was no longer necessary.

MacDonough also rejected a pay cut for Federal Reserve employees and a repeal of programs authorized by the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, among other rulings that would have to pass through the chamber as regular bills.

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