House Democrats Pass the Senate’s Inflation Reduction Act

House Democrats passed the Inflation Reduction Act in a strictly party-line vote on Aug. 12, sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk for final approval.

The 220-207 vote came as little surprise, as Democrats have been outspoken in their support for the package while Republicans have come out strongly against the legislation. Four Republicans did not vote.

The bill was passed by the Senate on Aug. 7 using the reconciliation process, which rendered it immune to the filibuster.

On July 27, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced that he had reached a deal with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to pledge his support for the $700 billion spending bill, which Democrats claim will bring in $725 billion in new revenue to the federal government and reduce the deficit by around $292 billion annually.

The Inflation Reduction Act was the product of a year of harried negotiations, compromises, and disappointments for Democrats as they tried to pass the much larger $1.75 trillion Build Back Better (BBB) Act.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) barreled ahead with the vote even though the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) had not given its final scores yet, meaning that the actual effect the bill will have on federal revenues, spending, the deficit, and national debt are largely unknown.

Republicans and Democrats alike have pointed to hundreds of economists who either support the bill or oppose it.

There is no consensus among the experts, and without CBO numbers, analysts can do little more than make an educated guess about the effects it will have.

Floor Debate

Prior to the vote, Republicans and Democrats debated the bill for about three hours on the House floor.

Democrats portrayed the bill as a timely one which will help reduce inflation and lower costs for American families. Republicans, on the other

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