This Week On Capitol Hill

The Senate will vote on a bill Tuesday aimed at providing incentives for businesses to not ship jobs overseas.

The Creating American Jobs and End Offshoring Act would grant two-year payroll tax holidays for companies that take on new employees who perform services in the U.S. that were once done abroad. The legislation is in line with the Democrats’ ‘Make it in America’ agenda.

Business groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers have come out strongly against the bill, arguing that it will make U.S. companies less competitive in the global marketplace. Democrats, however, say the legislation will help create jobs.

Meanwhile, the House will vote either Wednesday or Thursday on legislation aimed at providing health monitoring and financial compensation to first responders and others that were injured in the 2001 World Trade Center attacks. The bill failed the first time around in July, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she hopes to “have a strong, bipartisan vote to pass this critical legislation.”

On the issue of taxes, it appears extremely unlikely that either the House or Senate will take any action before adjourning for the final weeks of campaigning. While Pelosi has yet to completely rule out holding a vote sometime next week, most Democrats have signaled that they would rather address the issue after the midterms.

Jim Manley, the spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), said Thursday that the issue would be on hold for now. “We will come back in November and stay in session as long as it takes to get this done.”