- The U.S. Congress has passed a reconciliation bill, maintaining changes made in the Senate
- The sweeping reconciliation bill contains changes with major impacts to counties
The U.S. House has voted 218-214 to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), with no changes to the bill passed by the U.S. Senate on July 1. Passage of H.R. 1 before the July 4 holiday was a top priority for the White House and congressional leadership and the bill will now go to the president’s desk to be signed into law, completing the reconciliation process. The sweeping legislative package will have major impacts on America’s county governments, as detailed below.
How did we get here?
In February, the U.S. Congress initiated the budget reconciliation process when the House and Senate unveiled budget resolutions containing instructions to relevant congressional committees to draft legislation to either raise federal revenues or federal spending. On May 22, the House voted to pass its version of H.R. 1 by a vote of 215-214, moving the bill to the Senate.
The Senate made major changes, striking text that violated the “Byrd Rule,” which states that only budget-related provisions can be included in reconciliation. Additionally, during the vote-a-rama senators voted to adopt amendments further changing the text. See the full list of key changes made in the Senate here. On July 1, the Senate voted 51-50, with Vice President J.D. Vance casting the tiebreaking vote, to send its changes back to the House for final passage.
National Association of Counties
Jul 3, 2025