Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) signaled he has the votes to pass a rail safety bill he introduced in the Senate following a train derailment earlier this year in East Palestine, Ohio.
So far, six other Republicans have committed to backing the measure when it gets brought to the floor. But Vance told the Washington Examiner that, in addition to the unified support the bill is expected to receive from Democrats, he “privately” has the two additional GOP votes needed to overcome a Senate filibuster.
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The Senate has a packed schedule this fall, with nominations and a fight over government funding consuming much of the chamber's floor time. But Vance, who spoke with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Wednesday, said he had a commitment that the bill would get a vote.
"Obviously, September is going to be tough because we're only here like 10 days, and there's appropriations and funding bills and so forth," he said. "But I think we're in a good spot, and it's going to happen soon."
The bill has faced overwhelming Republican opposition over the regulations it would impose on rail companies after the East Palestine derailment caused a chemical spill the community grapples with to this day. But Vance, a first-term senator who ran on a populist platform, has succeeded in chipping away at GOP reluctance by making a series of tweaks to the bill.
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) were original co-sponsors, but Vance has since been able to bring on board Sens. Mike Braun (R-IN), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Mitt Romney (R-UT), and Eric Schmitt (R-MO).
Among the compromises, smaller rail companies would be exempt from a two-person crew requirement it imposes, while funds were allocated for commuter railroads to install hot boxes to detect malfunctions on their tracks. The latter, Vance previously acknowledged, was a concession to the rail industry.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the ranking Republican on the Commerce Committee, flirted with populism last year in siding with rail workers threatening a nationwide strike, but he opposed the bill when it advanced through the panel in May.
Cruz, who raised concerns that the legislation would empower “radicals” in the Biden administration to restrict the transport of American energy, particularly liquefied natural gas, told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday that he is open to further negotiations but that his position has not changed.
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Vance said he has spoken to House lawmakers as he seeks to build support for the bill, introduced with Democratic colleague Sherrod Brown of Ohio, but sees it as incumbent upon the Senate to pass the legislation before the lower chamber considers it.
Both senators readily acknowledge the bigger challenge will be the House.