The House on Thursday will take up the infrastructure bill approved by the Senate, a report said.
This delayed a scheduled vote for Monday, which Democratic moderates had requested as part of a deal with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
The lawmakers will continue to debate the bill on the House floor on Monday. However, the vote will be moved to September 30, at which point some transportation programs are set to expire, Pelosi announced in a Sunday night message addressed to Democrats.
The vote is just one aspect of an intense time in the House. Alongside the bipartisan vote on the infrastructure bill, Democrats will also be looking to act on the $3.5 trillion package that will expand social security net programs, avoid a government shutdown on October 1, and prevent a debt default.
However, House progressives have repeatedly stated that they would not support the bipartisan bill until their needs are taken care of within the larger social spending package. It includes features such as paid family leave and universal pre-K. It also provides community college for free, as well as initiatives to tackle climate change.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), who is the chairperson of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, last week stated that September 27 was an “arbitrary deadline,” she added that “it’s just an attempt to pass one bill and leave behind the bill that has the majority of the president’s agenda.”
Since the social spending plan remains in the process of being completed at the time of writing, it was unclear if the bipartisan bill would be able to pass through the House on Monday without progressives’ support. Jayapal has indicated that more than half of the members who make up her caucus wouldn’t support the infrastructure bill until after the package for social spending.
Surface transportation programs aren’t the only federal funding that is due to expire on Thursday. The federal government’s fiscal year is also expected to expire on that day, and there’s a chance that there’ll be a shutdown if Congress does not adopt a funding bill before the end of the year.
Lawmakers could have a bit longer to address the debt limit. Recent estimates suggest that the deadline could be later than the middle of October.
It’s essential to acknowledge the intricate negotiations in the House, not just the infrastructure bill vote. The impending September 30 deadline underscores the vote’s significant impact.