Democrats’ Latest Immigration Proposal Teed Up for Senate Review

Democrats will present a new version of their immigration proposal to the Senate parliamentarian as soon as Tuesday.

The effort to get the “Plan C” proposal cleared under Senate reconciliation rules comes after lawmakers received a cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office late Friday, according to a person familiar with the discussions. The estimate includes a range of costs for the plan, the person said.

Lawmakers were prepared to pitch the proposal as soon as Tuesday to the parliamentarian, a Senate Democratic aide told Bloomberg Government on Monday. The parliamentarian advises on whether provisions qualify for the reconciliation process Democrats are using to advance a sweeping social spending and tax bill.

Reconciliation allows legislation to pass on a simple majority vote in the Senate, but requires provisions to be primarily budget-related.

Democrats’ latest immigration plan features work authorization and protections for undocumented immigrants against deportation, a notch down from rejected proposals that would have offered a pathway to citizenship.

The rush to get the backup plan approved comes as House and Senate Democrats work to nail down details of the package after letting multiple self-imposed deadlines slip.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ellen M. Gilmer in Washington at egilmer@bloombergindustry.com

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sarah Babbage at sbabbage@bgov.com; Robin Meszoly at rmeszoly@bgov.com