US Senate introduces bipartisan infrastructure bill

Washington: The US Senate has introduced a long-awaited and hotly debated infrastructure bill after hours of efforts to finalise the legislative text.

Late Sunday night, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that given the bipartisan nature of the bill, he believed that the chamber could quickly process amendments and pass the bill "in a matter of days", reports Xinhua news agency.

This came just days after a bipartisan group of senators reached an agreement on the major issues of the $1.2 trillion bill infrastructure plan, which is much smaller than the plan President Joe Biden originally proposed.

The bipartisan bill includes $550 billion in new spending on infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, passenger rails, drinking water and waste water systems.

The rest of the package involves previously approved spending.

Schumer also noted that this bill is not all what the country needs, reiterating that he will continue the "two-track strategy," which includes efforts to advance a separate multi-trillion-dollar spending bill without Republican support.

The largely Democratic bill aims to enact most of Biden's social-spending agenda, such as childcare, education, and climate programs, using a process known as budget reconciliation.

With the Senate split 50-50, Democrats must take in moderates who could oppose elements of Biden's agenda.