参议院民主党人表示，他们已经达成了一项3.5万亿美元的预算协议。这是第一步解锁进程民主党人计划用简单的多数票通过乔·拜登总统的美国家庭计划的许多优先事项。
多数党领袖查克·舒默(Chuck Schumer)表示，这一预算方案，加上目前正在成员间谈判的两党基础设施法案，与拜登在阐述其家庭计划时所要求的“非常非常接近”。
舒默说:“拜登总统要求我们实施的每一个重大项目都得到了强有力的资助。“此外，我们正在对此进行一些补充。”
紧接着这一宣布，舒默说，总统将加入参议院民主党人周三的核心小组午餐，与立法者讨论这一计划。
舒默与预算委员会成员一起宣布了这一方案，尽管还不确定所有民主党人是否都会支持这一措施。通过这项法案需要一致支持。
根据弗吉尼亚州参议员马克·华纳的说法，该计划将全额支付。他没有详细说明和解法案将如何获得资金，但民主党人倾向于提高公司税率，这与拜登最初提出的方案并无不同。
华纳说:“有时候真的会发生大事，这就是其中之一。“我们共同制定的计划得到了全额资助，将对美国家庭进行投资，以满足需求的方式应对气候变化的生存威胁，在这个关键问题上引领世界。”
3.5万亿美元的上限仍低于预算主席伯尼·桑德斯一直希望的6万亿美元，但舒默周二晚间宣布，和解指令包括“大力扩大”医疗保险，这是桑德斯长期以来的优先事项。
桑德斯说:“在我们看来，这是美国历史上的一个关键时刻。“很长一段时间以来，美国人民看到非常富有的人越来越富有，政府制定政策，允许他们在某些情况下支付一分钱。这项立法在许多其他事情中表明，那些日子已经过去了。富人和大公司将开始缴纳他们应缴纳的税款，这样我们就可以保护这个国家的工薪家庭。”
参议院民主党人长期以来一直表示，他们打算利用一个名为和解的程序，让他们绕过通常的60票门槛，以简单多数通过立法，以通过拜登基础设施议程中两党单独的基础设施协议中没有涉及的部分。
两党基础设施计划也正处于一个关键时刻，因为该参议员小组正在努力公布其1.2万亿美元的立法文本——谈判者预计本周不会出现这种情况。但是一旦该法案被公开，就会有严重的潜在障碍-建议的收入是否真的能支付6，000亿元的新开支。
政府立法机关米特·罗姆尼犹他州共和党周二发出警告称，国会预算办公室(CBO)不能对谈判者提议的一些支付法案的方式进行定价或评分。国会预算办公室根据提议的支出和收入为立法提供“分数”或价格标签。
第一种无法得分的方式是从加强的国税局执法中筹集资金的计划。由10名参议员组成的两党小组(罗姆尼也是其中一员)估计，为了400亿美元的投资，他们将追踪那些不付钱的人赋税，这将带来1000亿美元的净回报。
罗姆尼说，CBO传统上没有在这类问题上发布官方“分数”，这可能会给共和党人带来危险，他们已经对加强一个过去被证明在政治上有争议的联邦机构保持警惕。
罗姆尼告诉记者:“CBO不会给这个分数，因为他们说，‘好吧，政府有权获得所有的税收，所以你不能因为实际获得了更多的税收而得到分数。
“总的来说，CBO对税收差距的评估是，他们并不依赖税收差距来进行评分，我认为这里会是这种情况。但我们认识到，有些我们认为是收入来源的东西，CBO可能无法获得。”
但俄亥俄州参议员罗布·波特曼(Rob Portman)和亚利桑那州民主党参议员基尔斯顿·西内马(Kyrsten Sinema)在接受美国广播公司(ABC News)采访时表示，预计CBO将对税收差距提案的收入做出估计，尽管这不会是一个官方分数。
“他们会单独分析，他们会给我们，不是官方比分，但他们会给我们一个分析，这是我们过去一直依赖的，”波特曼说。
周二晚上，22名参议员聚集在国会大厦吃了两个小时的晚餐，喝了酒，吃了奶油卷，其中包括最初起草一揽子计划的10名参议员，以及最初签署支持该计划的12名民主党和共和党议员。几位议员鼓吹在最终法案文本的谈判中取得了重大进展，但他们对如何为两党一揽子计划买单仍有分歧，尤其是CBO的分数悬而未决。
参议员们已经设定了周四的最后期限来解决他们剩下的分歧。
“我认为这是我们下一个真正的目标，就是努力完成一些事情，这样我们就能展示出一些积极的成果，”R-S.D .参议员迈克·查维斯(Mike Rounds)在谈到周四的最后期限时说。
尽管如此，几位谈判代表离开周二的会议时承认，最后期限是一项“艰巨的任务”
共和党党鞭约翰·图恩说，如果CBO返回的分数反映了一项没有完全支付的法案，这可能会吓坏他的一些成员。
“这让事情变得更难了，”这位来自南达科他州的参议员说。“我认为，我们的一些成员可能愿意接受一定数量的债务融资，但我认为，大多数成员必须以一种关键的方式获得融资，这是我们从一开始就面临的挑战。”
但对一些共和党人来说，CBO得分并不是决定性因素。
“对我来说没那么重要。我希望大部分能得到补偿，”共和党参议员罗伊·布朗特说。，这是一个由20名谈判者组成的独立的更大团体的一部分，他们是一个有共识的团体的一部分，寻求在一些措施上达成妥协。“我愿意接受一些不会得分的事情，比如在私人投资方面能做多少。”
“我的测试是——它是在我自己的头脑中支付的吗?”罗姆尼说。“我们能够——不增加赤字吗?我知道我们所依赖的某些东西可能不会获得CBO奖，但却是真实的。我想我的同事会知道的。”
阿拉斯加州参议员莉萨·穆尔科斯基说，她同意应该考虑分数，但这不是最终结果。
“如果分数没有完全按照我们想要的方式出来，我们都会晕过去吗?不，”穆尔科斯基说。“我们一直在关注的是好的，这是我们真正错过的东西，还是我们可以调整的东西?”
尽管许多共和党人支持对公共工程项目的私人投资，也就是所谓的公私合作，但他们可能会担心，CBO预计也无法在这方面设定收入价格。该组织估计这将带来超过1000亿美元的收入。
但对波特曼来说，他看到共和党人理解这一点——知道私人投资为公共资金提供杠杆，并经常在未来产生利润。
“你知道，为社会项目提供资金和为未来的固定资产提供资金是有区别的，它们将创造更多的经济活动并帮助经济，这就是原因。这不是直接资金。这是固定资产的长期资金，”波特曼告诉美国广播公司新闻。
在整个谈判过程中，两党团体中的一些民主党人表示，他们希望基础设施法案得到可信的支付。缅因州独立参议员安格斯·金(Angus King)与民主党人进行了党团会议，他说，CBO的分数给达成协议带来了额外的挑战。
“这很难。这是——这是艰难的，”金说。“问题的一部分在于，CBO对他们的得分有一些非常保守的看法。”
周二，一些人打消了对低于计划估计的担忧。
德蒙特参议员乔恩·特斯特。”他说，对于CBO将如何做出最终决定，他仍有疑问。
“我不知道他们使用什么样的数学，但这不是我在高中学到的数学，”Tester说。
尽管参议院共和党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔(Mitch McConnell)在最近两周的休会期间多次表示，他将寻求确保1.2万亿美元的两党计划得到“可信的支付”，但与麦康奈尔关系密切的波特曼表示，他认为这位肯塔基州参议员将理解最终CBO分析的稀疏性。
“他意识到这是基础设施，不同于其他东西，”波特曼说，他补充说，他认为——尽管通往议会审议的道路崎岖不平——如果每个民主党人都支持这项立法，该组织将获得最终通过这项立法所需的10名共和党人。
“十个?哦，是的，当然，”波特曼说。
22国集团仍在预测两党法案的积极结果。
“我的意思是，我很乐观，我们将找到一条前进的道路，”Rounds说。“那里的人们真的在努力倾听彼此的担忧，并找到(交易)。”
Democrats land on $3.5 trillion budget agreement
Senate Democrats said they have reached a $3.5 trillion budget agreement. This is the first step inunlocking a processthat Democrats plan to use to pass many of President Joe Biden's American Families Plan priorities with a simple majority of votes.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said this budget package, coupled with the bipartisan infrastructure bill currently being negotiated amongst members, comes "very, very close" to what Biden asked for when he laid out his families plan.
"Every major program that President Biden asked us for is funded in a robust way," Schumer said. "In addition we are making some additions to that."
On the heels of this announcement, Schumer said the president will join Senate Democrats for their caucus lunch Wednesday to discuss the plan with lawmakers.
Schumer announced the package alongside members of the Budget Committee, though it's still not certain that all Democrats will support the measure. Unanimous support will be necessary to pass the bill.
The package will be, according to Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., fully paid for. He did not give details on how the reconciliation bill will be funded, but Democrats have favored a hike in corporate tax rates, not unlike the one Biden originally proposed.
"There are times for really big things, this is one of those times," Warner said. "The plan we've put together, which is fully paid for, will make the investments in American families, will take on the existential threat of climate change in a way that will meet the needs, leading the world on this critical issue."
The $3.5 trillion topline still falls short of the $6 trillion that Budget Chairman Bernie Sanders had been hoping for, but Schumer announced Tuesday night that the reconciliation instructions include a "robust expansion" of Medicare, something that has been a longstanding priority for Sanders.
"This is in our a view a pivotal moment in American history," Sanders said. "For a very long time the American people have seen the very rich getting richer and government developing policies which allow them to pay in some cases not a nickel. What this legislation says among many many other things is that those days are gone. The wealthy and large corporations are going to start paying their fair share of taxes so we can protect the working families of this country."
Senate Democrats have long said they intend to use a process called reconciliation, which allows them to sidestep the usual 60-vote threshold and pass legislation with a simple majority, to pass parts of Biden's infrastructure agenda that are not addressed in the separate bipartisan infrastructure deal.
The bipartisan infrastructure plan is also at a critical juncture as that group of senators works to publish the text of their $1.2 trillion legislation -- something negotiators do not expect will happen this week. But once that bill is made public, there's a seriouspotential obstacle-- whether the proposed revenue will actually cover the $600 billion in new spending.
Sen.Mitt Romney, R-Utah, raised a red flag Tuesday saying that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) – which provides lawmakers with a "score," or price tag, for legislation based on proposed spending and revenue -- cannot price out or "score" some of the ways negotiators propose to pay for the bill.
The first way that can't be scored is the plan to raise money from beefed up IRS enforcement. The bipartisan group of 10 senators, of which Romney is a part, has estimated that for $40 billion of investment in going after those who do not paytaxes, that would net $100 billion in return.
Romney said the CBO has not traditionally issued an official "score" on such matters, which could spell danger for Republicans who are already wary of beefing up a federal agency which has proved politically controversial in the past.
"The CBO won't score that because they say, 'Well, the government's entitled to all of its tax revenue, so you can't get a score for actually getting more of it," Romney told reporters.
"Generally, the CBO's assessment of tax gaps is that they do not rely on them for scoring purposes and I would presume that would be the case here. But we recognize that there were some things that we saw as a source of revenue that the CBO might not be able to score."
But Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who is leading the bipartisan effort along with Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, told ABC News in an interview that the CBO is expected to give an estimate of revenue from the tax-gap proposal, though it would not be an official score.
"They will separately analyze it and they will give us, not the official score, but they'll give us an analysis, which we've relied on in the past," Portman said.
A group of 22 senators, including the 10 who crafted the original package and 12 other Democrats and Republicans who initially signed on to support it, huddled in the Capitol for two hours on Tuesday evening over dinner, wine and cannoli. Several lawmakers touted significant progress in negotiations toward the final bill text, but there remains disagreement among them on how to pay for the bipartisan package, especially with the CBO score hanging in the balance.
The senators have set a Thursday deadline to work out their remaining differences.
"I think that's our next real goal is to try to get something done so we can show some positive results," Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., said of the Thursday deadline.
Still, several negotiators left Tuesday's meeting conceding that the deadline is a "tall order."
Republican Whip John Thune said that if the CBO returns a score that reflects a bill that is not fully paid for, it could spook some of his members.
"It makes it harder," the senator from South Dakota said. "I think some of our members would be open to perhaps some amount of debt financing but the majority I think would have to be paid for in a critical way which is a challenge that we've had since the beginning of this."
But for some Republicans, the CBO score is not a deciding factor.
"It's less crucial for me. I'd like most of it to be paid for," said Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., part of a separate larger group of 20 negotiators who are part of a consensus-minded group seeking compromises on a number of measures. "I'm willing to accept some things that won't score, like how much can be done on the private investment side."
"My test is -- is it paid for in my own mind?" Romney said. "Will we be able to --to not add to the deficit? And I know there are some things that we're relying on as pay for's that will probably not receive a CBO score, but nonetheless are real. I think my colleagues will know that."
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said she agreed that the score should be considered, but is not a be-all-end-all.
"Are we all going to pass out if the score doesn't come out exactly the way we want? No," Murkowski said. "What we've been looking at is alright, is this something where we really missed or is this something where we can adjust?"
And though many Republicans support private investment in public works projects -- so-called public-private partnerships -- they could be concerned that the CBO is not expected to be able to put a revenue price tag on that either. It's something the group has estimated should bring in more than $100 billion.
But for Portman, he sees Republicans understanding that -- knowing that private investments provide leverage for public funding and often yield a profit down the road.
"You know there are differences between funding for social programs and funding for fixed assets into the future that are going to create more economic activity and help the economy, and that's what this is. This is not immediate funding. This is long term funding for fixed assets," Portman told ABC News.
Some Democrats in the bipartisan group have, throughout negotiations, said they want the infrastructure bill to be credibly paid for. Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats, said the CBO score presents additional challenges in striking a deal.
"It's tough. This is -- this is tough," King said. "And part of the problem is that the CBO has some very conservative views about what they'll score."
Some dismissed concerns on Tuesday of a lower-than-planned estimate.
Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said he still has questions about how CBO will come to its final determination.
"I don't know what kind of math they use but it isn't the math that I learned in high school," Tester said.
And though Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell repeatedly over the recent two-week recess said he would be looking to see that the $1.2 trillion bipartisan plan is "credibly paid for," Portman, with whom McConnell is close, said he thinks the senator from Kentucky will understand the sparse nature of the eventual CBO analysis.
"He realizes this is infrastructure and is different than other things," said Portman, who added that he thinks -- despite the bumpy road to floor consideration -- the group will get the 10 Republicans necessary for final passage of the legislation, if every Democrat supports it.
"Ten? Oh yeah, for sure," Portman said.
The group of 22 is still projecting a positive outcome for the bipartisan bill.
"I mean, I'm optimistic that we're going to find a path forward," Rounds said. "People in there really are trying hard to listen to each other's concerns and find (a deal)."
