House Votes 405-16 To Repeal Withholding Rule

In a 405 to 16 vote, the House passed Thursday legislation that would repeal a rule prohibiting contractor’s who do business with the U.S. government from immediately receiving full payment.

Under the measure passed in 2006, 3 percent of a contractor’s payment would be withheld until they pay their taxes. It was initially passed with the goal of preventing tax evasion or other forms of fraud. Hesitant lawmakers have repeatedly pushed its implementation back.

The large support for the legislation reflects a rare moment of bipartisanship in an increasingly divided Capital.

In a statement Wednesday, House Speaker John Boehner noted that repealing the rule was one of the sole similarities between the President’s jobs plan and the Republicans’ alternative jobs proposal.

However, it’s doubtful whether the repeal can be finalized. After President Barack Obama threatened to veto the Senate’s version of the legislation over the level of cuts it provided to offset any loss of revenue, the upper chamber killed the bill in a 57-43 vote.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor heralded the bill as a step Congressional Republicans are taking to help the business community “cope with this era of uncertainty.”

“This is another bipartisan and common sense solution to support the small business men and women of our economy so that they can begin to support and begin to regenerate our ailing economy,” Cantor said.