House Expected to Vote on Senate Measure Thursday
The
Senate voted 51-49 late on Oct. 19 to pass a budget resolution for FY
2018 after an hours-long marathon session on the Senate floor. Sen. Rand
Paul (R-KY) joined with every Democrat and independent to vote against
the bill.
The bill, meant to outline spending for the
fiscal year, is widely viewed primarily as a vehicle for passing tax
reform: It contains a legislative tool called reconciliation, which
would allow Republicans to move tax legislation through the Senate on a
simple majority vote.
Tax reform stands to impact higher education
in a range of ways: A number of higher education tax provisions have
been enacted over the years to help students and families save and pay
for college and repay student loans. Colleges and universities also have
a great interest in the research and development tax credit, as well as
the charitable deduction and charitable giving incentives.
Still, the document does outline Senate
Republicans’ overall spending priorities. It maintains spending at 2017
levels for the year, but would then cut nondefense spending in
subsequent years, leading to a $106 billion cut in 2027.
The Hill
reported today that while the House passed its own budget resolution
earlier this month, it is now expected to take up the Senate measure
this Thursday, Oct. 26. While the Senate bill includes the same
reconciliation language as the House bill, it does not include the
instructions to various committees to make more than $200 billion in
specific cuts to mandatory programs over the next 10 years,
approximately $20 billion of which are directed at programs overseen by
the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. The House bill also
would have reduced the overall level of non-defense discretionary
spending by roughly $8 billion for FY 2018. This is the category of
spending that includes nearly all federal funding for student aid and
research.