US Congress passes 2016 spending bill

Congress stopped its disordered yr on a shocking note of bipartisan unity & productiveness Friday., overwhelmingly approving an enormous 2016 tax & spending package & sending it to President Barack Obama for his signature.Obama welcomed the sprawling legislation, a rare compromise product of the divided authorities. “We recognize that we disagree on a whole bunch of other stuff, and have fundamentally different visions for where we want to move the country, but perhaps, because even before he was elected he had worked on Capitol Hill, I think he is respectful of the process and respectful of how legislation works”. “It was a acceptable win”.

He planned to sign the measure promptly.

Both the House and the Senate approved a combined omnibus legislation to fund the federal government for the next year while also making permanent a number of tax breaks, and $1.15tn in federal spending and $620bn in tax breaks.

The Senate adopted the Omnibus Appropriations Act by a vote of 65-33; the House did so by a 316-113 tally.

At the direction of U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, lawmakers will work on a measure separate from the spending bill to address Puerto Rico’s fiscal problems.

The White House has said President Obama would sign the package, which will remove the threat of a government shutdown until September 30, about a month before the 2016 elections.

Republican presidential contenders Sens. Texas Republican Ted Cruz also opposed the deal while Florida Senator Marco Rubio missed the vote for campaign events. The two bills were the result of compromises forged during detailed negotiations between majority Republicans and minority Democrats.

The vote is not “a function of the spending bill but… a courtesy to the new speaker”, said Huelskamp, who voted against the bill.

Republican Congressman Robert Pittenger, who voted for the spending bill, said the provision ending the ban on oil exports will echo around the world. “I am very proud of the big vote that we had from our members once they saw what was really, what was actually in the bill”, Pelosi told reporters at a press conference following the House vote.

In exchange for lifting the four-decade ban on exporting crude oil, for instance, Democrats secured measures extending wind and solar tax credits and reauthorizing a conservation fund for three years.

More than 50 expiring tax cuts will be extended, with more than 20 becoming permanent, including credits for companies’ expenditures for research and equipment purchases and reductions for lower-earning families and households with children and college students.

The bill increases defense spending, which Republicans said was critical given the level of unrest in the Middle East and the increased specter of terrorism. Then, Congress would adjourn until January. They warned if the bill didn’t pass, Republicans would still end up getting the tax cuts that were negotiated alongside the spending bill, and Democrats would be short-changing a host of programs they have fought to give more resources.

The tax measure drew particular scorn from budget hawks who complained that the $622 billion package, with a price tag that rises to $680 billion when similar benefits in the omnibus bill are included, is a giveaway that will only add to the nation’s red ink. It contains large spending boosts for veterans and medical research.

And it includes a two-year moratorium on the so-called medical device tax, a provision of Obama’s health care law that angered Republicans and Democrats alike.