Reconciliation headed back to House

NY Times:

With the Senate working through an all-night session on a package of changes to the Democrats’ sweeping health care legislation, Republicans early Thursday morning identified parliamentary problems with at least two provisions that will require the measure to be sent back to the House for yet another vote, once the Senate adopts it.

Senate Democrats had been hoping to defeat all of the amendments proposed by Republicans and to prevail on parliamentary challenges so that they could approve the measure and send it to President Obama for his signature. But the bill must comply with complex budget reconciliation rules, and Republicans identified some flaws.

Under the reconciliation rules, provisions in the bill must directly affect government spending or revenues.

The successful parliamentary challenge did not appear to endanger the eventual adoption of the changes to the health care legislation. And Mr. Obama on Tuesday already signed the main health care bill into law.

Senate Democrats said that one of the provisions in question involved changes to the Pell grant program, which is part of an education section in the reconciliation bill. The bill would establish an automatic increase in Pell grant awards, tied to inflation, for students from low-income families. The disputed provision would prevent any reductions in the maximum award.

Before the discovery of the parliamentary issues, Democrats defeated more than two dozen Republican amendments or other proposals aimed at derailing the legislation or making changes that would delay it by forcing an additional vote in the House.

Shortly before 2:30 a.m., Senator David Vitter, Republican of Louisiana, put forward yet another amendment. Mr. Vitter’s proposal would have exempted mobile mammography units from paying a federal fuel tax.

In urging adoption of his amendment, Mr. Vitter declared, “This reconciliation bill is already going back to the House.” At the same time, Senate leaders from both parties were conferring animatedly on the floor.

At about 2:45 a.m., with the flaws in the bill identified, the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, brought the late-night session to a close. The Senate was to resume work on the bill at 9:45 a.m. Thursday.

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The Republicans have gotten the Democrats on record as permitting Viagra for sex criminals, and they have found some chinks in the House armor that will require yet another vote. While the Democrats may be able to swat these problems away, it is another example of legistaltive mismanagement, like the recent suggestion that some preexisting conditions may still preclude health insurance, that after all this time and effort they do not manage their own job well much less those of the health care industry.