The proposal, which Biden’s top advisers have been discussing for weeks, will be divided into two separate sections – one focusing on infrastructure and clean energy, and a second focusing on the so-called “care economy”, with a focus on the zero important domestic economic issues.
In full, it will be a comprehensive step towards the implementation of the key elements of the “work agenda” that Biden set out mainly during his campaign for president, with a series of potential tax increases on companies and the rich as options to make any money finance. longer spending in the final proposal.
White House officials stressed that at this stage no final decisions have been made on the final way forward. Biden has yet to review the proposals and plans to consult with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the scope and legislative order of the next important pillar of his agenda.
“President Biden and his team are considering a range of possible options for investing in working families and reforming our tax code so that it rewards work, not wealth,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement. “These talks are ongoing, so any speculation about future economic proposals is premature and does not reflect the thinking of the White House.”
But the move to presenting proposals directly to Biden is an important next step, as the White House is settling on the scale of their next important legislative agenda item.
The president has vowed to split his key economic issues into two parts – a “rescue plan”, which was signed into law this month, and a recovery plan, which he plans to use for a comprehensive package with a lot of emphasis . on infrastructure.
Biden and his top advisers kept the focus on the $ 1.9 trillion Covid-19 rescue plan, but delayed the process in the next phase of the agenda as they tried to ensure its passage and then a few weeks later. to spend on promoting its most important elements. American public.
Up to this point, recommendations for the next phase have not yet reached Biden’s desk, officials say, although it is likely to be in the course of next week, as the White House moves to Congress at some point in the direction of Biden. will move, probably in April.
The infrastructure proposal will focus strongly on money for roads, bridges and railways, and will include hundreds of billions in spending on climate-related measures, as well as climate-related research and development. It will also include $ 100 billion for education infrastructure.
The plan for the domestic economy contains the key priorities of the Biden campaign, such as universal pre-K, substantial spending on childcare, care and proposals to address the parts of the workforce hardest hit by the pandemic economy .
According to his advisers, Biden plans to pursue dual support. He has held several oval office meetings on the issue. According to a participant, during a meeting in February in the Oval office with labor leaders, Biden repeatedly stressed that he thinks there is a way for duality over the issue.
But officials also plan for Democrats in Congress to move at the same time with a budget procedure that would allow each package to pass by a simple majority in the U.S. Senate.
While infrastructure has long been a two-pronged agreement, Democrats on both sides of Pennsylvania have made clear tax increases on the rich, and companies are likely to fund long-term spending from the proposal.
While Biden said what he plans to do policy-wise during the campaign – and any tax increases largely removed from the menu of options Biden outlined before taking office, officials say the possibility is already raging at the top. Republicans.
This is something Democrats are well aware of – and have sparked debates on both Capitol Hill and the West Wing on how to structure the legislative pressure. In the coming weeks, Biden is expected to weigh in on his position, while also staying in close contact with Schumer and Pelosi, officials say.
Although the planning is fluid, officials are tentatively watching Biden’s likely joint speech to Congress in April as the key thematic elements of the package.