Reconciliation: What's In It – and How the Senate Could Fix It

The House just passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) – a sweeping reconciliation package with major implications for the national debt and policy areas including taxes, education, and health care.

As the Senate weighs how to put its imprint on the bill, it has a chance to reduce the gimmicks, address unresolved tradeoffs, and make the legislation more fiscally responsible.

On Wednesday, June 4, 2025, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget hosted a virtual event, "Reconciliation: What's In It – and How the Senate Could Fix It." The event featured a fast-paced, 30-minute virtual briefing that broke down what’s in the bill, what it costs, and what steps lawmakers could take to make it more fiscally responsible – drawing on proposals from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Marc Goldwein, Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Director at the Committee, and Adam Shifriss, Senior Director, Legislative Strategy, walked through the major provisions, highlighted the budgetary implications, and outlined responsible paths forward. They took questions from the audience at the end.

You can read more from our full analysis of the CBO's cost estimate of the bill here. Watch the virtual event here and below: