Key Amendments Passed in the Senate’s Budget

Key Amendments Passed in the Senate’s Budget

From our Hill Sources: The Senate passed its first budget in four years, along with several amendments that were approved Thursday, Friday and very early Saturday morning.

The amendments are non-binding, because they are attached to the Senate’s non-binding budget resolution. They would take on more importance if they could survive a House-Senate conference, but it’s unclear whether the House and Senate will be able to reach a broad agreement on the budget given the huge difference between the two chambers’ budgets.

Still, the Senate amendments do provide an indication of the willingness to pass bills on certain policy issues. Many of the amendments that passed are especially interesting because they reflect Republican priorities that gathered enough support among Democrats to pass in the Democratic Senate.

UN Arms Trade Treaty

By a 53-46 vote, the Senate approved a proposal from Sen. James Inhofe to prevent the U.S. from joining the United Nations’ Arms Trade Treaty. Republicans in particular say joining the treaty, aimed at regulating arms trade, could infringe on the Second Amendment rights of U.S. citizens.

• HR 575 The Second Amendment Protection Act: The US should not adopt any treaty that poses a threat to national sovereignty or abridges any rights guaranteed by the US Constitution, such as the right to keep and bear arms, and to withhold funding from the United Nations unless the President certifies that the United Nations has not taken action to restrict, attempt to restrict, or otherwise adversely infringe upon the rights of individuals in the US to keep and bear arms, or abridge any of the other constitutionally protected rights of US citizens.
• HCR 23 House Resolution: Expresses concerns about the US becoming a signatory to the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty, or to any similar agreement on the arms trade.
• SCR 7 Senate Resolution: Expresses concerns about the US becoming a signatory to the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty, or to any similar agreement on the arms trade.

Missile Defense

The Senate approved an amendment from Sen. Kelly Ayotte to block funding of the Medium Extended Air Defense System. This project, which would replace the Patriot missile systems in the U.S. and Germany, has been plagued by cost overruns, and the Senate voted 94-5 to block its funding.

• HR 1128 The Protecting US Missile Defense Information Act: To ensure the effectiveness of the missile defense system of the United States.

“Too Big to Fail”

An amendment from Sen. David Vitter to end public subsidies to “too big to fail” banks was passed 99-0.

• S 100 The Terminating the Expansion of Too-Big-To-Fail Act: To amend the Financial Stability Act of 2010 to repeal certain designation authority of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, to repeal the Payment, Clearing, and Settlement Supervision Act of 2010.

Estate Tax

The Senate voted 80-19 in favor of language from Sen. Mark Warner to repeal the estate tax in a fiscally responsible way.

• HR 782 The Permanently Repeal the Estate Tax Act: To amend the tax code to repeal the estate tax and retain stepped-up basis at death.
• HR 147 The Death Tax Repeal Act: To repeal the Federal estate and gift taxes.

Biennial Budgeting

A proposal from Sen. Johnny Isakson to set up a congressional budgeting process that happens every two years, instead of every year, as approved 68-31.

• HR 879 The Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act: to provide for a biennial budget process and a biennial appropriations process and to enhance oversight and the performance of the Federal Government.
• S 554 A bill: to provide for a biennial budget process and a biennial appropriations process and to enhance oversight and the performance of the Federal Government.

Online Sales Tax

A bipartisan amendment to allow states to collect taxes on sales made online was passed 75-24. Many members of both parties have called for this change as online sales increasingly replace sales in physical stores, which has depleted state tax revenues.

• S 336 The Marketplace Fairness Act: to restore States’ sovereign rights to enforce State and local sales and use tax laws.
• HR 684 The Marketplace Fairness Act: to restore States’ sovereign rights to enforce State and local sales and use tax laws.

Keystone Pipeline

The Senate voted 62-37 in favor of an amendment from Sen. John Hoeven to approve the Keystone oilseeds pipeline. More than a dozen Democratic senators voted in favor of the GOP proposal, and the Senate also voted 33-66 against language from Sen. Barbara Boxder to delay Keystone’s approval.

• S 582 A bill: To approve the Keystone XL pipeline.
• HR 334 The Keystone For a Secure Tomorrow Act: To approve the Keystone XL pipeline project permit.
• HR 3 A bill: To approve the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Keystone XL pipeline.

Medical Device Taxes

The 2010 healthcare law imposed a 2.3 percent tax on gross revenues of medical device tax companies, which was to be used to pay for the health reform law. But in a 79-20 vote, the Senate agreed to bipartisan language to repeal the tax.

• HR 581 The First Responder Medical Device Tax Relief Act: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt certain emergency medical devices from the excise tax on medical devices.
• S 232 The Medical Device Access and Innovation Protection Act: to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the excise tax on medical devices.

Hospital Payments

In a 68-31 vote, the Senate approved a plan from Sen. Tom Coburn to repeal language in the 2010 healthcare law that boosts Medicare payments to hospitals in Massachusetts at the expense of hospitals in most other states.

No stand-alone bill.

Medicare Status

This proposal from Sen. Debbie Stabenow to prohibit the replacement of guaranteed Medicare benefits with a voucher program was approved 96-3.

No stand-alone bill.