Republican lawmakers are focused on enhancing affordability for everyday Americans. They will need to move quickly to pass a third reconciliation bill before the upcoming August recess. 

Republican lawmakers in Washington are considering the process for a third reconciliation bill that would focus on funding immigration enforcement and reining in the spending of taxpayer dollars to improve national security and affordability for Americans. 

The timeline is tight with August recess approaching. 

“We have to get this done before the August recess. It’s ambitious. We know the process. We understand as a conference how to come together,” said Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas). Pfluger chairs the Republican Study Committee. 

“We’re going to have to move quickly. I think we have 25 legislative days left before August break. We need to have something out of the house by then, at least. So, time is of the essence,” said Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), chair of the House Budget Committee. 

The reconciliation process would allow Republicans to bypass the 60-vote requirement in the Senate to pass a party-line budget bill. 

The process can be used a limited number of times per year, which gives House and Senate Republicans two more chances to use it to send legislation to President Trump. 

This reconciliation bill would focus on restoring funding to immigration enforcement and border security. 

“This bill allows us to make America affordable again. It allows us to make America secure, and it allows us to make America fraud-free,” said Pfluger. 

“When we go home during the August recess we can tell our constituents, here are the provisions that we heard you ask for, and we’ve done them, and they’re not going to be put into place at some future date. When the president signs the law, people will get to enjoy those benefits,” Pfluger added.

President Trump set a June 1 deadline for Congress to deliver a reconciliation bill to his desk to fund ICE and deliver affordability measures for everyday Americans. Lawmakers fell behind on this deadline and have just a few weeks before August to get it done. 

The reconciliation package being floated on Capitol Hill would provide nearly $72 billion, mostly for immigration enforcement funding. 

The House has its first votes scheduled for Wednesday this week while the Senate continues to work on the legislation.