Republicans, Democrats Reach Agreement on 2016 Budget
- VOA News
- Dec 16, 2015
- 1 min read
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nev., accompanied by, from left, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., Senate Minority Whip Richard Durbin of Ill., and Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015.
U.S. congressional negotiators have reached an agreement on a $1.1 trillion government spending plan through 2016 that would extend many popular tax cuts for businesses and individuals.
House Republican lawmakers unveiled provisions of the massive spending bill late Tuesday night after emerging from a meeting led by House Speaker Paul Ryan. The items include an end to the 40-year-old ban on exporting crude oil from the United States sought by Republicans, and a five-year extension of tax breaks for producers of wind and solar energy sought by Democrats.
The bill also imposes a two-year freeze on a pair of taxes aimed at funding President Barack Obama's signature health care law -- a current tax on medical devices, and a tax on high-value health insurance plans that was to take effect in 2018.
The Republican-controlled House and Senate are expected to vote on the spending plan Thursday.
The agreement comes weeks after the White House reached an agreement with then-Speaker John Boehner to fund the government through 2017, which averted a potential government shutdown ahead of the start of the fiscal 2016 budget year.
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