Holidays see House head home, vacancies narrow House margins, tax talk starts

With the approach of Easter and Passover the House will not have votes for the next three weeks but will have committee hearings. The Congressional leadership and White House are in talks to develop the next round of legislation. The legislative strategy for Democrats is complicated by the narrow House majority and the 50/50 tie in the Senate.

Infrastructure has been the most widely discussed next step for the White House and Congress; and there is already talk as to whether or not it can be jammed through under Budget Reconciliation or if a bipartisan consensus can be reached. In my view the decision by the House Republican Caucus to join Democrats and to renew budget earmarks may be a sign that a bipartisan infrastructure bill may be possible. Earmarks give members a direct link to the spending decisions. In fact, in earlier days the rule was if a Member opposed the overall bill they couldn’t get their earmarks into the legislation. It was a great tool for Leadership to build support for the underlying legislation.

There have been some early discussions about whether or not an infrastructure bill would need to be fully funded, and if so what the funding sources would be. The gas tax hasn’t been raised since 2009, but it is viewed as a very regressive tax, with newer ...

Unlock this article with a FREE 30-Day Trial!

An FSI Pro, or FSI Macro subscription is required in order to access this content.

*Free trial available only on a monthly plan

Disclosures (show)

Get invaluable analysis of the market and stocks. Cancel at any time. Start Free Trial

Articles Read 2/2

🎁 Unlock 1 extra article by joining our Community!

You’ve reached your limit of 2 free monthly articles. Please enter your email to unlock 1 more articles.

Already have an account? Sign In

Don't Miss Out
First Month Free