Good morning, friends:
This week, the Senate is marking up the second budget reconciliation package of this Congress, which will focus primarily on funding for immigration enforcement. The two Senate committees of jurisdiction – the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee – have scheduled their markups on May 19. Congress is scheduled to adjourn on May 22 for the Memorial Day recess, giving little room for error to meet President Trump’s deadline of June 1 to pass this reconciliation package.
As a reminder, budget reconciliation is a legislative process that reduces the Senate’s standard 60-vote threshold to a simple majority. There are, however, restrictions on what can be included in a budget reconciliation package. Senate budget rules limit reconciliation legislation to provisions that change spending levels, revenue, or the debt limit. The Senate Parliamentarian rules on what items are not eligible to be included in a reconciliation package through a process known as a Byrd Bath, named after former Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV), to prevent the abuse of the expedited reconciliation process for non-budgetary policy. If helpful, you can read a prior Bridge Brief that discussed the budget reconciliation process in greater detail.
This reconciliation package will appropriate $72 billion for immigration enforcement, primarily to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP). At the end of last month, Congress passed an appropriations bill funding most of the Department of Homeland Security, ending the record 76-day shutdown of the agency. That bill, however, did not include funding for ICE or CBP, due to opposition from Senate Democrats. Congressional Republicans will use this second reconciliation package to fund those DHS agencies for three years – the remaining years of President Trump’s term.
The most controversial provision in the reconciliation package comes from the Senate Judiciary’s portion, which provides $1 billion to the Secret Service. In a briefing to Senate Republicans, Secret Service Director Sean Curran said that $220 million of that will be earmarked for security upgrades related to President Trump’s ballroom in the East Wing of the White House. President Trump has said that the ballroom project would be funded by private donations, but that the security upgrades would be paid for by the Secret Service. The White House has insisted these security upgrades are needed, especially following the shooting at White House Correspondents’ Dinner last month.
However, over the weekend, the Senate parliamentarian ruled this provision out of order on the basis that the provision fell outside of the jurisdiction of the Judiciary Committee. Republicans are expected to redraft the language so it can be included, but several senators, including Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Rand Paul (R-KY), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Kennedy (R-LA), John Curtis (R-UT), John Husted (R-OH) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), have expressed hesitancy or opposition to the provision. Senate Republicans can lose no more than three members and would then need Vice President JD Vance to break a tie.
Likewise, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA-4) has an extremely narrow majority in the House and struggled to pass the budget resolution, which was the first step in the reconciliation process. Many House Republicans have privately expressed to House GOP leadership that including funding for the ballroom project appears tone-deaf, given many voters are struggling with the rising cost of living.
Some Congressional Republicans have advocated for a broader reconciliation package, specifically provisions to address concerns about affordability leading up to November’s midterm elections. However, GOP leaders will likely keep this reconciliation package narrowly focused on funding the DHS agencies and possibly look at a separate reconciliation package later this year that could include provisions addressing concerns about rising inflation, home ownership, alleged fraud in social service programs, funding for the Iran war, tax cuts, and the SAVE America Act, a top priority for the White House addressing election security.
Bridge Public Affairs will continue to monitor this reconciliation package closely and will update you as this proceeds. If you have specific questions or concerns about how this will affect you, please reach out to us so we can set up a time to discuss.
Sincerely,
Bridge Public Affairs
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