Senate Republicans presented the long-awaited version of President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill" on Monday, with notable changes made to the version that passed the House.
What Happened: Spearheaded by Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), the bill includes tax provisions such as deductions for tips and overtime pay, as well as a boost to the standard deduction, according to a report by The Hill.
The Senate also raises the federal debt ceiling by $5 trillion, which is $1 trillion more than the House version. Stricter Medicaid eligibility requirements have also been drawn up.
Noteworthy policy changes include semi-annual Medicaid eligibility redeterminations and restrictions on states' ability to use provider taxes to draw down federal funds.
The bill maintains a $10,000 cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions, reversing a House deal to raise it. It also sets a lower increase for the Child Tax Credit than the House bill and phases out Biden-era clean energy credits more gradually, while terminating the hydrogen tax credit by 2026 unless projects are already underway.
Why It Matters: The proposal is already facing backlash from multiple factions. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is against the large debt ceiling increase, while Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) argues the bill does not go far enough to curb the deficit, saying, "We're not seriously addressing our long-term deficit and debt issues."
The Medicaid cuts, estimated by the CBO to reduce spending by $863 billion over a decade, would leave 10.9 million more Americans uninsured if enacted. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) criticized the rural impact, saying, "We're going to pay for [green subsidies] by defunding rural hospitals. That's going to be a hard argument to make in Missouri."
Senators from blue states also criticized the SALT cap rollback. "Instead of undermining the deal already in place… the Senate should work with us to keep our promise of historic tax relief," wrote House SALT Caucus co-chairs Reps. Young Kim (R-Calif.) and Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.).
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