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TOPLINE

The Senate parliamentarian on Monday said Democrats can use budgetary rules to pass at least one more bill than previously thought without the need for GOP support to break a filibuster, paving the way for Democrats to pass multiple sweeping infrastructure bills this year.

KEY FACTS

In a statement, a spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the parliamentarian advised “that a revised budget resolution may contain budget reconciliation instructions,” suggesting Democrats can now pass at least two more bills through reconciliation this year.

The ruling, Schumer’s spokesperson stated, “confirms the Leader’s interpretation of the Budget Act” and “allows Democrats additional tools to improve the lives of Americans if Republican obstruction continues.”

With the infrastructure bills slated to start in the House and take several months to get to the Senate, Democrats have not yet decided whether they will use reconciliation, but Schumer’s office nonetheless called the ruling an “important step forward” and said a “key pathway is available to Democrats if needed.”

Republicans have put up firm opposition to Biden’s initial $2 trillion infrastructure proposal so far, with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stating it “won’t get any support” from his caucus, much like the coronavirus relief bill passed last month without support from a single Republican.

But even if Democrats opt to split the plan into multiple bills and pass it through reconciliation, it may still run into trouble: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Monday he and “six or seven” Democrats oppose the plan’s corporate tax hike.

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