With a vote of 97-2, the Senate passed a bill Tuesday that will fund the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund through 2090.
The fund was originally established in the months following the September 11 terrorist attacks to support the families of the victims killed, as well as survivors living with injuries.
The law, which required reauthorization, was expected to expire next year.
The fund has received more requests in recent years for serious illnesses related to the attacks and cleanup, according to CNN reporting.
The House approved the new legislation earlier in July, and President Donald Trump is expected to sign the bill.
Comedian and former “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart, an ardent supporter of the first responders to the September 11 attacks, had heavily lobbied for the legislation, and testified on Capitol Hill alongside some of the first responders.
Sen. Rand Paul objected to the bill on the grounds that passing the legislation would require other expenditures to be cut, which delayed its passage in the Senate.
The fund is expected to cost $10.2 billion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The bill’s full title is “Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alvarez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act,” named after three first responders who died from 9/11-related illnesses.
Fox News says it has agreed to part ways with Tucker Carlson, less than a week after settling a lawsuit over the network’s 2020 election reporting.
President Joe Biden said Monday that his top domestic policy adviser, Susan Rice, will leave her post next month.
Former President Donald Trump appears in court for his arraignment in a criminal case over fraudulent business records, April 4, 2023, in New York.
The Supreme Court is facing a self-imposed Friday night deadline to decide whether women’s access to a widely used abortion pill will stay unchanged until a legal challenge to its Food and Drug Administration approval is resolved.
President Joe Biden will formally announce his 2024 reelection campaign as soon as next week, three people briefed on the discussions said Thursday.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres bluntly challenged the climate efforts of President Joe Biden and other world leaders Thursday in a message for a White House summit, charging that expanded oil and gas drilling and other policies of the richest countries amount to a “death sentence” for the planet.
Twitter has removed labels describing global media organizations are government-funded or state-affiliated.
Supreme Court Justice John Roberts is being asked to testify to Congress as scrutiny mounts around Justice Clarence Thomas.
The GOP-dominated Iowa Senate passed a bill that would loosen the state's child labor laws.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has unveiled a sweeping package that would raise the nation’s debt limit by $1.5 trillion into next year.
Load More