Feb 7, 2008 7:51 pm US/Eastern
Congress Passes Emergency Tax Rebate Plan
WASHINGTON (AP) ―
Congress, facing the prospect of an election-year recession, passed an emergency plan Thursday that rushes rebates of $600 to $1,200 to most taxpayers and $300 checks to disabled veterans, the elderly and other low-income people.
President Bush indicated he would sign the measure.
House passage by a 380-34 vote came a few hours after Senate leaders ended a drawn-out stalemate over the bill. The $168 billion plan is intended to provide cash for people to spend and tax relief for businesses to make new investments -- boosts for an economy battered by a housing downturn and a credit crunch.
The Senate's 81-16 vote capped more than a week of political maneuvering. The stalemate ended when majority Democrats dropped their demand that rescue proposal offer jobless benefits, heating aid for the poor and tax breaks for the home building and energy industries.
GOP senators refused to relent in their opposition to those ideas, but did agree to add $300 rebates for older people and disabled veterans to a $161 billion measure the House passed last month.
Rebate checks could begin arriving in May. The rebates would be based on 2007 tax returns, which are not due until April 15.
Please stay with CBS 2 HD and wcbstv.com for more on this developing story.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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