House Panel Advances $10 Billion SAVE America Grants in 20-14 Vote as Senate Path Looks Frail
Updated
Updated · Democracy Docket · Jul 16
House Panel Advances $10 Billion SAVE America Grants in 20-14 Vote as Senate Path Looks Frail
3 articles · Updated · Democracy Docket · Jul 16
Summary
$10 billion in election-related grants cleared the House Budget Committee on a 20-14 vote Thursday, creating a reconciliation vehicle for Republicans to push SAVE America Act-style voting restrictions.
The grants would reward states that adopt measures such as documentary proof of citizenship for registration and voter ID at the polls, recasting the proposal as budgetary policy to bypass the Senate filibuster.
That workaround still faces major hurdles: the Senate parliamentarian already ruled the underlying SAVE America provisions non-budgetary, budget experts doubt the grant structure would survive a Byrd review, and Sen. Thom Tillis vowed to fight it.
The broader $95 billion package also funds the Iran war and tariff-hit farmers, but fiscal hawks object to the lack of spending offsets, leaving House passage uncertain with only a few workweeks left before the midterms.