Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Faces New Hurdle in Senate Rules

Some Democratic policy goals in President Biden’s wide-ranging $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan could soon face a familiar obstacle: arcane Senate rules that limit what type of legislation lawmakers can approve along party lines.

While Mr. Biden and top Democrats have said they are hoping to approve the legislation with bipartisan support, many Republicans have sharply criticized the plan’s proposed tax increases on companies. The Republican opposition to the plan has left Democrats preparing to advance the package through reconciliation, a process that allows lawmakers to skirt the 60-vote threshold required for most legislation.

Democratic aspirations for approving legislation along party lines received a boost on Monday when the chamber’s parliamentarian indicated that lawmakers could use the procedure multiple times in one fiscal year. But even if Democrats can employ the process more frequently, measures passed through reconciliation will still need to comply with a number of Senate rules, including that they have a direct impact on the budget.

Those rules could mean that several provisions in the plan, including labor rules and a clean electricity standard, may have to be removed from or amended in the final legislation, according to lawmakers and aides.

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D., Ore.), the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said he expected several favored measures to be disallowed under the Senate rules. In particular, a push to bring back earmarks—which allow lawmakers to designate specific projects for funding—may be ruled out of bounds, he said.