The New York Times-20080126-Congress Moving for Swift Passage of Stimulus
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Congress Moving for Swift Passage of Stimulus
House Democrats on Friday said they would try to speed passage of a $150 billion economic stimulus package by scheduling it for a vote on Tuesday, eight days earlier than originally planned.
The Senate, too, said it would pick up the pace, potentially bringing the bill to the floor on Thursday.
Several powerful Senate Democrats have said they want to add components to the plan, including an extension of unemployment benefits and possibly a provision to increase the number of elderly Americans eligible to receive one-time payments of $300, but the new timetable suggested they would have to move rapidly to do so.
President Bush, meanwhile, warned the Senate not to complicate the stimulus package.
Congress should move it quickly, Mr. Bush said in a speech to House Republicans who were at an annual retreat at a resort in White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. I understand the desire to add provisions from both the right and the left. I strongly believe it would be a mistake to delay or derail this bill.
The House deal, announced on Thursday by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., and the Republican leader, Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, includes tax rebates of up to $600 for individuals and up to $1,200 for couples and, for families, an additional payment of $300 per child.
Tax filers who earned at least $3,000 last year but paid less than $300 in income taxes would receive a payment of $300. Elderly Americans living on Social Security who do not have $3,000 in income from other sources would not qualify.
The package also includes tax breaks for businesses to encourage investment in new equipment and other spending.
Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana and the chairman of the Finance Committee, and other Democrats have criticized the House package, saying it should inject money into the slowing economy more quickly, using such mechanisms as the extension of unemployment benefits and an increase in food stamps.
The Treasury Department has said rebate checks could be distributed in May at the earliest.
Mr. Baucus, too, planned to work through the weekend as his committee drew up its own stimulus package. Mr. Paulson met on Thursday with Mr. Baucus and Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Finance Committee.
Mr. Paulson, who spent much of Wednesday at the Capitol brokering the accord with Ms. Pelosi, returned to the Hill on Friday for a meeting with Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and the chairman of the Banking Committee. He also spoke again by phone with Mr. Baucus, who held a meeting with Finance Committee members.
Other Senate Democrats are pushing for an array of additions to the stimulus package, including infrastructure projects like road resurfacing, and expanded counseling for homeowners to help avoid foreclosures.
Senator Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington, called for extending clean-energy tax incentives, which she said would spur $7 billion in spending by the wind power industry and create 75,000 jobs in 2008. Senators Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, and Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, pushed for the increase in food stamps.
But Ms. Pelosi, in a speech at the National Press Club, pushed back. What was being bandied about was a 10 percent increase in food stamps, she said. Do you know what that translates for a person on food stamps? Ten cents a day. Ten cents a day. I thought it was more important to put a check for $1,000 in the hands of the mom of that family.
Mr. Boehner also urged the Senate to show restraint, saying: It would be irresponsible for Senate Democrats to load this bill up with pork and other spending. Families and small businesses need help now.
But Senator Kent Conrad, Democrat of North Dakota, said in a radio interview that the package could be improved. The Senate has a role to play here, Mr. Conrad said.
[Illustration]PHOTO: Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke during a luncheon at the National Press Club on Friday that was also attended by Senator Harry Reid.(PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDREW COUNCILL FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES)