Congress has passed President Donald Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill,’ a landmark piece of tax cuts and spending legislation containing many of the Republican’s campaign promises.
Dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the $3.3 trillion measure took an all-encompassing, multi-year effort from Republicans in Congress to pass.
After passing the House after hours of high-pressure negotiations with hold-out members, it will now head to the White House for Trump’s signature. The president plans on holding a signing ceremony on Independence Day between military flyovers, including the B-2 bombers recently deployed to Iran.
The behemoth, nearly 900-page legislative package extends the president’s 2017 tax cuts and further eliminates taxes on tips and overtime – a marquee promise that the president pledged repeatedly on the campaign trail.
It doubles the child tax credit and includes a popular $1,000 ‘Trump investment account’ – formerly known as MAGA accounts – for newborn babies.
Also included in the measure are steep cuts to Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and renewable energy programs expanded by former President Joe Biden.
‘We are delivering on our promise to make America great again,’ Speaker Mike Johnson declared on the floor just before the passing vote.
The tax cuts alone will cost $4.5 trillion over the next ten years, according to projections from the Congressional Budget Office. To offset the massive price tag Republicans included $1.2 trillion in spending cuts, mainly trimming Medicaid, the health care program for the poor and disabled.
However, the measure stirred much controversy within GOP ranks and even drew the ire of billionaire Elon Musk for its massive spending, which he likened to ‘political suicide.’
Though that did not sway Trump and the White House from celebrating the measure.
‘The USA is on track to break every record on growth. Go Republicans, beat the Crooked Democrats tonight! Pro-growth tax cuts never fail,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social before the vote.
‘We had great conversations all day, and the Republican House Majority is united, for the good of our country, delivering the biggest tax cuts in history and massive growth.’
Using a parliamentary tactic called reconciliation, the tax and spending bill had to align the House and Senate Republicans on a single framework so they could avoid the typical 60-vote threshold needed in the upper chamber.
Though no Democratic support was needed to push the bill through to completion, the process was still marred with controversies and hiccups as moderate and right-wing GOP lawmakers argued over the overall price tag and a handful of controversial provisions.
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Tax cuts to a debt ceiling increase: Here’s what’s in the ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’
In a sweeping new fiscal package, Congress unveiled a major overhaul of tax policy, federal spending, and entitlement programs with President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
The proposal includes a permanent extension of key provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, significant new investments in defense and border security, and stricter eligibility requirements for Medicaid and federal student loans.
Here’s a breakdown of what’s in the plan.
Taxes
- Permanent extension of much of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
- Deduction for qualified tip wages capped at $25,000 and overtime pay capped at $12,500 for individuals for three years
- Standard deduction gets increased by $750 for single fliers, to $15,750
- Child tax credit increased to $2,200
- Car loan interest deduction of up to $10,000 for individuals making under $100,000 annually (couples under $200,000) who purchase U.S.-made vehicles
- State and local tax deduction cap raised to $40,000 through 2029
- Excise tax on endowments goes up to 8% on wealthy colleges with at least 3,000 students, while imposing lower rates of 4% or 1.4% on institutions with fewer assets
New spending
- Debt ceiling increased by $5 trillion
- Nearly $150 billion in additional border security spending, including $46.5 billion to construct a U.S.-Mexico border wall and about $30 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- Approximately $154 billion in additional defense spending, including $25 billion for the president’s space-based “Golden Dome” missile defense system and $29 billion to boost shipbuilding
- $50 billion in funding for rural hospitals in Medicaid
- New “Trump” savings account for parents and guardians of children born between Jan. 1, 2024, and Dec. 31, 2028, with the feds providing an initial $1,000 seed money
Cuts and restrictions
- Mandated 80-hour-a-month Medicaid work requirement for able-bodied adults and adults with children 15 and older
- Millionaires are restricted from receiving unemployment benefits
- Restrictions on large abortion providers, such as Planned Parenthood, from receiving Medicaid funding
- Lifetime borrowing limit of $257,500 for federal student loans; borrowing for professional degrees capped at $50,000 per year and $200,000 lifetime; for graduate students, unsubsidized loans capped at $20,500 per year and $100,000 lifetime
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