President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending bill has been dealt a series of policy blows, but not at the hands of Democrats or internal Republican disagreements.
Rather, the Senate parliamentarian, an appointee reviewing the megabill as a nonpartisan arbiter, has determined that dozens of provisions are noncompliant with the Byrd Rule, which applies to reconciliation and requires that all language in the measure have a direct fiscal effect. The Byrd Rule is a legislative process that allows the majority to skirt the filibuster for budgetary legislation, which Senate Republicans are seeking to advance Trump’s domestic agenda on energy, taxes, and the border.
Policies that Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough rules against can either be amended to comply or would require 60 votes to be included, a threshold Republicans would undoubtedly be unable to muster with a three-vote majority and against unified Democratic opposition. Many of the stricken provisions can be brought into compliance with minor technical changes, according to GOP lawmakers.
The full bill is still under review, with Senate Republicans hoping to pass their iteration in the coming days and have it clear the GOP House for final passage by July 4.
Some of the most consequential rulings made by MacDonough thus far include policies on Medicaid funding and eligibility, abortion funding, food stamp cuts, immigration enforcement, and clean energy tax credits.
Here are other provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that have been ruled noncompliant under the Byrd Rule.
Finance
- Medicaid and CHIP for illegal immigrants: barred eligibility for those without verified citizenship or qualifying immigration status.
- Medicaid funding for certain noncitizens: barred federal funding to states for Medicaid coverage of certain noncitizens.
- Reduced funding for states that cover illegal immigrants: lowered Federal Medical Assistance Percentage from 90% to 80% for states that cover illegal immigrants with their own funds.
- Medicaid spread pricing: required care reimbursement amounts handled by pharmacy benefit managers to be passed through in full to pharmacies.
- Ban on transgender procedures: prohibited Medicaid and CHIP funding for transgender procedures.
- Medicaid provider taxes: reduced amount states could charge in provider taxes, lowering the amount states can boost Medicaid budgets with federal contributions. Republicans are working on a Byrd-compliant fix.
- Limiting Medicare coverage for aliens: revoked eligibility from certain noncitizens, including refugees, asylum-seekers, and those with temporary protected status.
- Obamacare tax credit eligibility: limited noncitizens who qualify for health insurance premium tax credits. Those ineligible for Medicaid would also not qualify for insurance premium credits.
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
- Student aid for noncitizens: removed federal financial student aid eligibility for certain noncitizens.
- Student loan repayment: required federal loan borrowers to either have a standard plan with fixed payments over 10-25 years or a new income-based repayment starting July 1, 2026.
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness: payments made by students while in medical or dental internships/residencies do not qualify for the forgiveness program.
- Workforce Pell grants: expanded Pell grants to unaccredited and for-profit institutions.
- Silver loading: changed appropriated funds for Affordable Care Act Marketplace insurers beginning in 2026 to end “silver loading” of direct payments.
- Obamacare abortion funding: prevented certain Obamacare subsidies for health insurance plans that cover abortions.
Energy and Natural Resources
- NEPA compliance: offshore oil and gas projects were ruled compliant with the National Environmental Policy Act to avert the environmental review process.
- Offshore oil and gas leasing: leases awarded within 90 days after sale.
- Ambler Road: greenlit construction of Ambler Road, a controversial mining road in Alaska.
- Mandatory public land sales: The Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Lands could sell millions of acres of federal public land. Republicans are working to make this Byrd compliant.
- Renewable energy fees: The Secretary of the Interior would no longer be able to reduce solar and wind project fees on federal land.
- Geothermal leasing and royalties: required the Secretary of the Interior to hold annual geothermal lease sales and change royalties.
- Natural gas exports and imports: allowed natural gas exporters to pay a fee to approve projects.
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
- State and local assistance: states, in addition to the federal government, could enforce border security and immigration rules. Republicans made changes to comply with the Byrd Rule and reimburse state and local authorities.
- Civil service protections for new federal employees: retirement incentives for being “at will” employees, easing restrictions for firing new civil servants.
- Filing fee for federal employee claims and appeals: a $350 fee for federal employees to file a case with the Merit Systems Protection Board, which reviews claims of alleged wrongdoing against an employer.
- Rescinding federal funds: agencies deputized to rescind funds appropriated by Congress if deemed “unnecessary expenditures.”
- Labor union costs for using federal resources: federal employee unions pay a fee for using official time and agency resources.
- Executive overhaul of agencies: empowered the Executive Branch to more easily alter government agencies, including consolidations or eliminations, without Congress’s approval.
- Ending USPS electric vehicles: required sale of all USPS EVs and chargers.
- Rulemaking process for agencies: prohibited federal agencies from implementing or enforcing rules that affect appropriated spending levels unless required by statute.
Judiciary
- Sanctuary cities: curtailed grant funding for sanctuary cities.
- Empowering non-feds on immigration: state and local officials authorized to arrest noncitizens suspected of being in the U.S. illegally. Republicans are working to adjust this language to make it Byrd compliant.
- Weakening judges’ powers: limited ability of federal courts to issue nationwide preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders to reduce anti-Trump rulings and lawsuits against the federal government.
- Weaken federal government’s ability to settle with third parties: limit the federal government’s power to enter or enforce settlement agreements that involve compensation to third parties.
Commerce, Science, and Transportation
- Fire-damaged Texas pier: funded $250 million rebuilding of damaged Coast Guard station on South Padre Island, TX.
- NASA space vehicle: funded $85 million for transferring the space shuttle from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum to a Houston nonprofit.
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
- SNAP funds: states increased food stamp cost share with the feds. Republicans have submitted updated text in hopes of complying with the Byrd rule.
- SNAP eligibility: removed food stamps for illegal immigrants and certain lawful permanent residents.
- Farm bill: extended suspension of permanent price support authority, typically addressed in a five-year farm bill.
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
- Defunding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: effectively eliminated the Obama-era agency by reducing operating funds to 0%.
- Federal Reserve staff pay: cut $1.4 billion by reducing staff pay for Federal Reserve workers.
- Financial research fund: cut $293 million from the Office of Financial Research Funding.
- Public Company Accounting Oversight Board: cut $771 million to eliminate PCAOB.
Environment and Public Works
- IRA clean energy repeals: slashed green energy tax credits under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act.
- Tailpipe emissions standards: repealed air pollution standards starting with model year 2027 for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles.
Armed Services
- Penalty for late spending plans: defense appropriations will be reduced if Pentagon spending plans are missed by the deadline.