Yards from the finish line, House-Senate negotiators were still fighting Wednesday over how to pay for extending jobless benefits?a task made more difficult because of the corporate competition over the proposed sale of wireless spectrum to raise needed revenues.
The spectrum auction receipts, together with changes in the retirement benefits for federal workers, are needed to offset the estimated $30 billion cost of the 10 month extension of the unemployment benefits. But AT&T was described as furious with proposed language in the deal that could affect its ability to bid for the spectrum. On top of that, negotiators had yet to resolve how much money should be set aside to help operate a new public safety network with a dedicated portion of the spectrum for first responders.
Continue ReadingThere are potential trade-offs. House Republicans would like to appease AT&T by refining language its negotiators have already accepted. Senate Democrats would like more financing for the network. But as the day ran on, there was no immediate solution in sight, giving rise to accusations of bad faith on both sides.
?The basic question is do Republicans want to get anything done at all?? said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), who has been at the center of the spectrum issue as chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
Sen. Jon Kyl, the minority whip who serves on the conference committee, downplayed the disagreement as a technicality as negotiators were writing the final details.
?They are really the kind of things that end up needing attention when you get down to writing something,? he said, predicting a deal will be announced by the end of the day.
Hanging in the balance is not the just the fate of the jobless benefits, due to expire at the end of this month, but also a larger package impacting Medicare reimbursements for physicians and President Barack Obama?s signature payroll tax holiday.
The leadership had been hopeful that all three issues could be dealt with in a single bill before Congress goes home this week for its annual Presidents? Day recess. And a tentative deal was announced Tuesday in anticipation that the final details could be worked out within a day.
The spectrum portion has always been a bit of a policy iceberg: most lawmakers never see or comprehend the complex, big policy decisions underneath the surface. And there has been a tendency to set a target for receipts?before the policy is worked out.
Senate Democrats would argue that the House GOP has been unrealistic in assuming as much as $16.5 billion could be realized from the sale. For this reason, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus encouraged the inclusion Tuesday of an extra $4 billion in back-up savings from higher fees for government-sponsored enterprises.
But the House backed away from this option Wednesday?demanding instead that any shortfall be covered by additional cuts from federal pensions or the jobless benefits themselves.
This is difficult for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to accept, especially when he is being asked to also move on the AT&T issue and that the cost concerns affect first responders to use as their main line of communication.
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