WASHINGTON — Republicans have blocked a Senate jobs bill that included a repeal of the ethanol tax credit. Yet ending that tax break remains a live option for budget cutters looking for ways to reduce massive federal deficits.
The Senate voted 51-49 against allowing a final vote on the overall bill, which would have renewed the Economic Development Administration for five more years. All 47 Republicans were joined by four Democrats in derailing the bill.
The bill had collected more than 80 amendments, mostly from Republicans, doing everything from blocking President Barack Obama's health care law to barring the prairie chicken from becoming an endangered species. Republicans complained that amendments weren't considered.
Despite the bill's defeat, the Senate vote last Thursday to end ethanol tax credits shows strong support to do so.
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