Top Senate Democrats have drafted an $82.5 billion "jobs" plan that would help small businesses, boost spending on road construction and mass transit, and give local governments money to retain teachers.
The draft document proposes $20 billion for a job creation tax credit and $12.5 billion to retrofit homes and businesses to make them more energy efficient. It has not been publicly released but a summary was obtained by The Associated Press.
The debt-financed plan faces a difficult path through Congress, especially since Republicans now control enough seats to maintain a filibuster in the Senate. The House passed a significantly larger plan last month.
The plan also would rescind $150 billion in unused Wall Street bailout authority.