$600 Million Amendment To Address Flint, Michigan Water Crisis Sticking Point
Senators were well on their way to pass bipartisan-supported energy legislation as early as this week after expedited debate. However, when “lawmakers failed to agree on a $600 million amendment” to address the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, the New York Times reported, Senate Democrats on Thursday “blocked action on a comprehensive energy bill that had drawn broad bipartisan support,” beating back two attempts to end debate on the bill. In the first attempt, senators were “10 votes short of the 60-vote threshold needed to bring” debate on the bill to a close. During the second attempt, senators were six votes shy of the 60-vote threshold to end debate. With the absence of the $600 million Flint aid package, “38 Democrats, including one of the bill’s chief authors, Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington, voted against moving forward on the first vote, and 39 Democrats voted no on the second vote.” The Times pointed out that this bill is “the first major energy legislation to come to the Senate floor in nearly a decade” and is designed to “modernize the nation’s power grid, expand production of renewable energy, accelerate exports of natural gas and improve the government’s response to cybersecurity threats.”
What Happens Next
The votes “will delay, but not derail, the legislation,” the Times said, adding that immediately following the votes, Senate Majority Leader McConnell said the bill’s authors “would work through the weekend to find a path forward on both the energy bill and the Flint aid amendment.” Similarly, Roll Call reported in its “#WGDB” blog McConnell has “entered a motion to reconsider the vote, meaning it could be called again if an agreement is reached.”
What This Means For Small Businesses
Though the setback in debate over energy legislation in the Senate sounds like partisan politics as usual, there are still encouraging signs that Congress aims to move to enact changes to energy policy this year that may help small businesses, particularly those in the energy sector.
Additional Reading
Reuters also covered the story.
Note: this article is intended to keep small business owners up on the latest news. It does not necessarily represent the policy stances of NFIB.
