Access Living friends and allies,
Today, we expect to see important movement on the U.S. Senate version of the federal budget reconciliation bill. Disability advocates should pay close attention to what happens today for a few different reasons. (Quick action link to make calls and send emails here)
Getting around the Parliamentarian’s rulings. The Senate Parliamentarian has ruled that several components of the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) do not meet the requirements of the Byrd Rule. This includes ways that Senate leadership has attempted to cut Medicaid and SNAP. However, because the Senate OBBB text is not yet final, Senate offices will attempt to re-insert those pieces using different language.
Final text of the Senate OBBB will likely come out midday today. When the final text comes out, the public will have the chance to see what the bill includes. Given that many Senators made it clear they want even bigger cuts than the House made, we await this text with grave concern. The final text will attempt to resolve any Senators’ concerns so that the Senate leadership can pass the OBBB with 51 Republican votes.
Motion to proceed expected later today. With the final text of the OBBB in hand, Senate leadership will introduce a motion to proceed to consider the bill on the Senate floor. This opens a process for debate, and then a vote-o-rama (learn more about a vote-o-rama here). The vote-o-rama is expected to take all weekend, so that the OBBB is ready to send back to the U.S. House for agreement.
The big deadline, and the big vote problem. The President continues to make it very clear that he wants to sign the OBBB on or before the Fourth of July, which is Friday of next week. If the Senate passes the OBBB, Senate leadership must then negotiate the bill with the House, because the Senate version is different from the House version. The House passed its version of the OBBB with a very tiny margin (215 in favor, 214 opposed). The Republican House majority will need to find a very fine balance of agreement to get the final OBBB passed to send to the President. Ensuring that the votes stick is not, in fact, guaranteed. There is a small chance the OBBB might not pass, but the political pressure to get it through is extremely intense right now.
What can advocates do right away to stop the OBBB? We know we sound like a broken record, but today, it is critical to call and email BOTH your U.S. Senators and your U.S. Representative to say NO to cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. Thousands of disability advocates have contacted Congress so far, and we have to stay loud and strong. Here is a quick link to send emails AND make phone calls to your members of Congress. Every effort counts right now.
We will continue to keep you updated today, once we see the final text. Thank you for being part of our advocacy community.