Monday, May 19th, 2025

Budget Reconciliation Package: Talks about a cap on state and local tax deductions are ongoing. The House Ways and Means Committee approved a sprawling tax package even as blue-state Republicans are calling for a higher cap than the $30,000 level written into the measure.

The House Agriculture Committee has been tasked with finding $230 billion in deficit reduction, largely through cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The Committee approved policy changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, including a requirement that states cover at least 5 percent of the costs of food stamps.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee on advanced a legislative package that would amount to the biggest changes to Medicaid since the passage of the 2010 health care law, including work requirements for some recipients and an overhaul of how states can finance their programs. 

The various parts of the "big, beautiful" budget reconciliation bill now go to the House Budget panel to get formally pieced together. The markup is largely a procedural event, as the Budget Committee itself is barred from making any changes to the bill.

The bill, should it pass the House, also has to get through the Senate, where some Republicans have raised concerns about the levels of Medicaid cuts.