Follow-Up: Senate Advances Permitting Reform Bill 73-25, Moving It Into Full Debate
The U.S. Senate on Monday, November 9, voted 73 to 25 in Washington to invoke cloture on the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act of 2026 (S. 5653), clearing the 60-vote threshold and moving the bill into full debate and further votes. The yes votes included 51 Republican senators, 21 Democratic senators and one independent, while most of the no votes came from Democrats, including Senator Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico.
The bill was introduced on September 30 by Senators Shelley Moore Capito, Mike Lee, Sheldon Whitehouse and Martin Heinrich, and is moving this round on the House vehicle H.R. 2347. It would set firm deadlines for federal environmental reviews, speed permitting for pipelines, mines, power plants and transmission lines, and require large data centers to cover the grid costs they create. President Donald Trump urged all senators to vote for the bill in a Truth Social post on November 8.
Under the Senate schedule, the sponsors will first offer their manager's amendment, after which other senators may offer amendments of their own, with a final Senate vote expected in the coming days. The bill has not passed: even if the Senate approves it, it must still pass the House and be signed by the president to become law. Whitehouse told reporters before the vote that the bill is expected to save consumers about $60 to $80 a month.
Opposition was also on the record. Environmental and tribal groups oppose the bill, and Food & Water Watch said in a statement after the vote that the bill weakens environmental rules and urged the House to reject it. The sponsors, for their part, said the amendment released over the weekend added provisions requiring, not merely encouraging, tribal consultation in federal permitting decisions affecting tribes and nations. (Source: U.S. Senate)
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Source: U.S. Senate
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国会大厦全景（联邦核心固定图库）。照片：Wikimedia Commons「Capitol Building Full View.jpg」，公共领域。The United States Capitol, full view (Wikimedia Commons, 'Capitol Building Full View.jpg', public domain).
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- 2026-11-09Follow-Up: Senate Advances Permitting Reform Bill 73-25, Moving It Into Full DebateThis story
