Updated Jun 16, 2025 - Politics & Policy

Senate unveils trickiest text of Trump's "big, beautiful bill"

Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, from left, Senator John Barrasso, a Republican from Wyoming, and Senator Mike Crapo, a Republican from Idaho, speak to members of the media following a meeting outside the White House — Majority Leader John Thune, along with Sens. John Barrasso and Mike Crapo, speak to members of the media following a meeting outside the White House. Photo: Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Senate Finance Committee Republicans published their text of President Trump's "one big, beautiful bill" Monday evening, which includes major tax reforms and even steeper Medicaid cuts than the House called for.

Why it matters: This is the trickiest part of the GOP's marquee legislation, which also includes raising the debt ceiling as well as border and military funding.

Now, Senate GOP leaders will work to whip the votes needed to pass the full package before the July 4th break.

Zoom in: The Senate is making some key changes to the House's version of the bill, which passed last month.

The Child Tax Credit would increase to just $2,200 — less than the $2,500 in the House version.
It would make permanent various business and other tax incentives, including expensing of investments in equipment and R&D.
Republican senators are proposing deeper cuts to Medicaid spending by lowering the provider tax that certain states are allowed to assess. For states that have adopted Medicaid expansion, it gradually lowers the provider tax from 6% to 3.5% in 2031.

The Senate version also softens the phase out of various energy tax credits that were part of the Inflation Reduction Act, allowing more projects to access the credits before they end.

The Senate also removed a measure that significantly limited a tax break for sports team owners.
It includes a lower state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap, as well.

Between the lines: The Senate version, like its House counterpart, doesn't change how carried interest is taxed, handing a win to the private equity industry.

Trump had proposed treating carried interest as regular income and therefore taxing it at a higher rate.

What to watch: The committee has the SALT cap set to $10,000 in the new text — far below the $40,000 limit the House landed on after weeks of intense, high-stakes negotiations between leadership and a handful of blue-state representatives.

The $10k is intended as a placeholder as the chambers continue to work toward a final, compromise number.
GOP senators have almost no incentive to pass a generous SALT cap, but understand that the number will be critical to House Speaker Mike Johnson's (La.) ability to pass the final bill through his chamber.

Go deeper: Read the bill text here.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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Senate unveils trickiest text of Trump's "big, beautiful bill"

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