Senate Approves Budget Resolution Amidst Flurry of Amendments - Women's Congressional Policy Institute

After four days of contentious debate, the Senate approved its FY2001 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 101) by a party line vote of 51-45 on April 7. Final passage came after a voting marathon on April 7 in which the Senate adopted and defeated numerous amendments. At press time, detailed information on many of the amendments was not available.

Earlier in the week, adoption of the resolution appeared in jeopardy due to differences between Republican Budget Committee members and Republican Appropriations Committee members. However, an agreement late in the week cleared the way for final passage. The House passed its resolution on March 23 (see The Source, 3/24/00, p. 1). Although the House and Senate spending plans closely mirror one another, minor differences will have to be resolved during a House-Senate conference. Both bodies are anxious to approve the final resolution by the April 15 deadline.

Overall, the Senate budget resolution would provide $596.5 billion in discretionary spending in FY2001 and would provide for $150 billion in tax cuts over the next five years. S. Con. Res. 101 would set aside $20 million of the Social Security surplus for the enactment of a Medicare prescription drug coverage benefit. If a Medicare reform bill is not reported by September 1, the money could then be used for a prescription drug benefit stand-alone bill or for an amendment to another bill. Additionally, if Congress has not acted on a prescription drug benefit bill by FY2004, the amendment would earmark an additional $20 million for FY2004 and FY2005.

Prior to final passage, Senators attempted to adopt over 50 sense of the Senate amendments en bloc dealing with women’s health, fatherhood, children, child safety seats, child welfare, estate taxes, breast and cervical cancer, Social Security, and home offices. However, Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) objected to the procedure, which prevented the amendments from being considered. Throughout the week, Senators debated a plethora of amendments. Several amendments were adopted that pertain to women and families. These included:

an amendment by Sen. Tim Hutchinson (R-AR) that expressed the sense of the Senate to provide marriage tax penalty relief. The amendment was adopted, 99-1.
an amendment by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) that expressed the sense of the Senate that Congress should complete action on juvenile crime legislation (H.R. 1501), currently in conference, by April 20. The amendment also requests that the Senate gun control provisions be included in the final measure (see The Source, 5/21/99, p. 1). The amendment was adopted, 53-47.
an amendment by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) that would reduce the tax cut by $2.7 billion to increase the maximum Pell Grant by $400 to $3,. The amendment was adopted, 51-49.
an amendment by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) that would increase the funding for the National Institutes of Health by $2.7 billion. The amendment was adopted, by voice vote.
an amendment by Sen. Kennedy that expresses the sense of the Senate that the minimum wage should be increased by $1 over the next two years. The amendment was adopted, 51-48.
an amendment by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) that expressed the sense of the Senate that after-school programs be fully funded. The amendment was adopted, by voice vote.
an amendment by Sens. Christopher Bond (R-MO) and Ernest Hollings (D-SC) that would double funding for Community Health Centers. The amendment was adopted, by voice vote.

Senators defeated a number of Democratic-sponsored amendments that would have affected women and families, including

an amendment by Sen. Charles Robb (D-VA) that would have delayed a tax cut until the enactment of a Medicare prescription drug coverage benefit. The amendment was defeated, 51-49, when proponents failed to garner the 60 votes necessary to sustain a point of order against the amendment.
an amendment by Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) that would have reduced the tax cut by 15 percent to increase funding for certain education programs by $5.6 billion to $80.64 billion. The amendment was tabled, 54-46.
an amendment by Sen. Robb that would have shifted $5.9 billion of the $150 billion for tax cuts to school modernization projects. The amendment was tabled, 54-45.
an amendment by Sen. Kennedy that would have expressed the sense of the Senate on the need to enact legislation that would raise the minimum wage by $1 over two years. The amendment was defeated when Senators adopted, 51-49, a second-degree amendment by Sen. Don Nickles (R-OK) that reiterated support for a minimum wage provision adopted by the Senate last year that would increase the minimum wage by $1 over three years (see The Source, 11/12/99, p. 4).
an amendment by Sen. Kennedy that would allow states to offer health insurance through the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to parents of eligible children. The amendment would have shifted $11 billion from the $150 billion tax cut into the program. The amendment failed, 49-49.