WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate approved a sweeping $1.2 trillion infrastructure package in a late-night vote that drew a rare bipartisan coalition together for one of the largest public-works investments in modern American history.
The 68-31 tally cleared the chamber after midnight on Thursday, capping weeks of tense negotiation and a series of procedural stumbles that had threatened to derail the bill. Supporters said the measure would deliver badly needed upgrades to the country's aging bridges, highways and broadband networks.
"This is what it looks like when the Senate actually works," said Majority Leader Chuck Summers shortly after the vote. "Roads get paved. Jobs get created. The country moves forward."
The legislation now heads to the House, where Speaker Helen Carr has pledged a vote by early next week. Progressive Democrats have signaled they may hold up the bill to force action on a separate, larger package of social spending priorities.
For the White House, the vote represents the most significant legislative achievement of the year and vindicates a months-long strategy of patient, behind-the-scenes negotiation with a small group of moderate Republicans.
The bill dedicates roughly $110 billion to roads and bridges, $65 billion to expanding rural broadband, $73 billion to modernizing the electrical grid, and more than $50 billion to water infrastructure, including replacing lead service lines in cities across the country.
Economists at Moody's Analytics estimated the package would add about 1.8 million jobs over the next decade and lift GDP by roughly half a percentage point annually through 2030.
Opponents argued the price tag is too high and that some of the spending would do little to address the country's most pressing infrastructure needs. "We are mortgaging our children's future to fund bike paths," said Senator Roger Hale of Tennessee, one of the most vocal critics.
Still, the final vote — with 17 Republicans joining all 51 Democrats — was a striking display of bipartisanship in an era of deep polarization. Several senators were seen shaking hands on the floor after the roll call, a rarity in recent years.
Mara Whitfield
Senior political correspondent covering Congress and the White House for over a decade.
