The House of Representatives passed legislation tonight that would extend for one year the employee payroll tax rate of 4.2%, extend unemployment insurance, and renew the "doc fix" that prevents cuts in reimbursements to doctors who see Medicare patients. However, the bill has little chance of being enacted because it also includes several provisions that Democrats have publicly opposed, including language that would speed up approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, authorize the Federal Communications Commission to auction new sections of the electromagnetic spectrum, and delay new EPA regulations for industrial boilers. The bill was passed on a largely partisan basis in the House, with 10 Democrats supporting the measure while 14 Republicans rejected it.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has vowed that the legislation will not pass his chamber, and President Obama has threatened to veto the bill if it does. Both President Obama and Majority Leader Reid have strongly supported an extension of the payroll tax but are opposed to attaching other controversial provisions to the extension. Lawmakers from both parties are expected to work on a compromise that would extend the payroll tax for 2012 before leaving Washington for the holidays.
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