Housing stimulus package passes Senate on 84-12 vote

The housing stimulus package comes in the wake of an earlier round of tax rebates and small-business tax cuts aimed at reviving a struggling U.S. economy.

The Senate passed the housing bill 84-12.

Supporters called it a good first step and a signal that Congress plans to respond to the mortgage crisis.

Opponents claimed the legislation does not go far enough to help homeowners in danger of losing their homes. They said it was tilted to bail out lenders who share blame for the housing mess.

A pending House measure would do more for borrowers, providing tax credits for first-time home buyers. It would remove the $7,000 tax credit for purchasers of foreclosed homes that is included in the Senate-passed bill.

The Senate bill provides $25 billion in tax incentives for home builders and other businesses that have lost money in the subprime mortgage mess.

Another $10.9 billion in tax-free mortgage revenue bonds would be targeted to help borrowers refinance subprime loans. Grants totaling $4 billion would be set aside for municipalities to buy and remodel abandoned homes.

The bill provides a one-time tax credit of $500 for individuals or $1,000 for couples who pay property taxes but do not itemize their deductions.

The Senate version would overhaul the Federal Housing Administration to help more Americans refinance into FHA-backed loans.

The House is expected to seek $300 billion for the FHA to insure refinanced loans of homeowners who risk foreclosure.

Sens. John Ensign, R-Nev., and Harry Reid, D-Nev., voted for the bill.

HOUSE PUTS OFF TRADE DEAL

The House, in a party-line vote, stalled a controversial free-trade pact with Colombia in anger over President Bush’s decision to forward the agreement to Congress without the support of Democratic leaders.

The House voted 224-195 to change its rules to delay consideration of the pact. Without the move, Congress would have had 60 legislative days to consider the deal.

Democratic leaders wanted to hold off on the agreement because they said they weren’t consulted on the measure. Democrats also said their priority is a new Trade Adjustment Assistance program, which they said would help unemployed workers and boost the economy.

Proponents of the trade pact said the House’s action damages relations with a key South American ally and jeopardizes future trade agreements with other countries.

The rule change probably puts off any vote on the Colombia accord until next year.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., voted for the delay. Reps. Jon Porter and Dean Heller, both R-Nev., voted against it.

CONSERVATION RECOGNIZED

Over objections from some Western-state lawmakers and gun-rights advocates, the House placed into law a conservation system that covers more than 26 million acres of federal land, mostly in the West.

The vote was 278-140.

The National Landscape Conservation System Act codifies a program created in 2000 as a way to protect and conserve national historic trails, scenic rivers, wildlife areas and national monuments. The system encompasses about 10 percent of the land overseen by the Bureau of Land Management.

Opponents maintained that the legislation would tighten restrictions on activities on the lands. Amendments to the bill protect grazing rights and ensure states may manage hunting, fishing and trapping on the lands.

Supporters said putting the system into law allows BLM to manage the some 800 units as comprehensive entities and may motivate Congress to provide more money to protect the lands.

Berkley and Porter voted for the measure. Heller voted against it.

SENATE AMENDMENTS

The Senate easily passed a broad bill containing 62 provisions related to public lands nationwide after turning back amendments proposed by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla.

The bill would establish national heritage areas in Illinois and New York, designate a federal wilderness area in Washington state and advance plans for a memorial to President Eisenhower in Washington, D.C.

The legislation had been delayed for months because of an amendment Coburn said he would introduce that would have loosened regulations on firearms in national parks. Coburn agreed to withdraw the amendment after receiving criticism from members of his own party.

Four other Coburn amendments were defeated.

One, which failed 63-30, would have ordered the Office of Management and Budget to complete an annual tally of the amount of land owned by the federal government and an estimated taxpayer cost to own and maintain the land.

Opponents said it would be too burdensome and costly to catalog annually some 1.2 billion property assets and 635 million acres of land worldwide.

Ensign voted for the amendment. Reid voted against it.

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau reporter Aaron Sadler at asadler@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760.