Senate parliamentarian knocks pieces out of Trump’s megabill

Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has ruled that several key pieces of the massive bill to implement President Trump’s agenda run afoul of the Byrd Rule and must be taken out of the package to allow it to pass with a simple majority vote on a special procedural fast track.

The parliamentarian ruled against several provisions under the jurisdictions of the Senate committees on Banking, Environment and Public Works, and Armed Services.

These included a provision that would have placed a funding cap on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which would have cut $6.4 billion from the agency by reducing its maximum funding to zero percent of the Federal Reserve’s operating expenses. The funding cut would have eliminated the agency.

The creation of the CFPB was one of the central reforms of the Dodd-Frank Act that Democrats passed in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

She also ruled against language cutting $1.4 billion in costs by reducing the pay of Federal Reserve staff, cutting $293 million by reducing the Office of Financial Research funding and cutting $771 million by eliminating the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (Ore.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Budget Committee, touted the parliamentary rulings.

“The Senate Parliamentarian advised that certain provisions in the Republicans’ One Big, Beautiful Betrayal will be subject to the Byrd Rule – ultimately meaning they will need to be stripped from the bill to ensure it complies with the rules of reconciliation,” Merkley said.  

“As much as Senate Republicans would prefer to throw out the rule book and advance their families lose and billionaires win agenda, there are rules that must be followed and Democrats are making sure those rules are enforced,” he added.

Senate Republicans will need to remove the provisions from the bill or otherwise would have to muster 60 voters to overcome a point of order against the bill.

Senate Republicans hold a 53-47 seat majority.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) could opt to override the parliamentarian’s ruling with a simple majority vote on the floor, establishing a new Senate precedent, but he has indicated he does not plan to do that.

The parliamentarian ruled several sections of the bill under the jurisdiction of the Environment and Public Works Committee also violated the Byrd Rule.

She ruled against the repeal of funding authorizations in the Inflation Reduction Act and the repeal of the Environmental Protection Agency’s multipollutant emissions standards for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles for model years 2027 and later.

She also ruled against a provision under the Armed Services panel’s jurisdiction that would reduce appropriations to the Department of Defense if spending plans are not submitted on time.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the ranking member on the Senate Banking Committee, applauded the parliamentarian’s rulings on the issues under her committee’s jurisdiction.  

“These proposals are a reckless, dangerous attack on consumers and would lead to more Americans being tricked and trapped by giant financial institutions and put the stability of our entire financial system at risk,” she said.

“Democrats fought back, and we will keep fighting back against this ugly bill,” she said.

Warren’s Banking staff submitted in-depth written briefs to the parliamentarian in advance of her ruling.

Warren’s staff and Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott’s (R-S.C.) staff also presented oral arguments to the parliamentarian during a June 16 meeting that lasted for 90 minutes.

Updated at 12:55 p.m. EDT