The bill would revoke funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS.
WASHINGTON—Senate Republicans are looking to pass a bill to rescind $9 billion in allocated federal funding by a July 18 deadline.
The Senate began on July 16 a process called a vote-a-rama, where an unlimited number of amendments can be offered.
This move follows the bill’s clearing two procedural hurdles in the Senate on the night of July 15, as Vice President JD Vance, who serves as president of the Senate, broke the ties on those votes. Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) joined all Democrats in voting against advancing the bill.
In a statement, Collins explained her vote against advancing the legislation.
“The rescissions package has a big problem—nobody really knows what program reductions are in it. That isn’t because we haven’t had time to review the bill. Instead, the problem is that OMB has never provided the details that would normally be part of this process,” she said, referring to the Office of Management and Budget.
“I recognize the need to reduce excessive spending and I have supported rescissions in our appropriations bills many times, including the 70 rescissions that were included in the year-long funding bill that we are currently operating under. But to carry out our Constitutional responsibility, we should know exactly what programs are affected and the consequences of the rescissions.”
Murkowski said on the Senate floor ahead of the votes that she does not like how the Senate has been operating lately.
“I don’t want us to go from one reconciliation bill to a rescissions package to another rescissions package, to a reconciliation package, to a continuing resolution. We’re lawmakers. We should be legislating,” she said.
Murkowski also said the Trump administration has not provided a “very transparent explanation about the programs and the priorities that are going to be cut as a result of the measure.”
The rescissions bill originally would have rescinded $9.4 billion in funds. However, $400 million was taken out, as a provision to cut funding for a program to combat HIV and AIDS abroad, called PEPFAR, was removed from the bill. With the change to the bill, which the House passed last month, the bill would have to be passed again by the House were the Senate to pass it before it goes to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature.
House Republicans expressed displeasure over the change.
“I’m troubled by the fact that we are not willing to be very aggressive when it comes to rescissions,” Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.) told The Epoch Times.
