Editor’s note: this explanation of ‘The One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ now before the U.S. Senate is presented with extensive assistance of NotebookLM, a program that helps accurate condense very large, often undigestible documents into more readable documents.

Read the Congressional Research Service review here. Read the Congress.gov webpage with access to the unedited text here.

By Guy Page, with lots of help from Notebook LM

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” that has passed the House and now faces Senate scrutiny is a daunting read. With the help of Notebook LM, VDC offers a condensed, concise, readable outline of some of the proposed expenses and taxes.

These include several tax and spend items about which I was unaware, until reading the NotebookLM condensation. For example: 

$45 billion for adult alien detention capacity and family residential centers. $2.5 billion for surface water storage. A 10% transfer tax on silencers. Funding prohibited for “specified gender transition procedures.”

And a whole slew of new fees – 

• $150 to protest oil and gas leases.

• $1000 for seeking asylum in the U.S.

• $2500 for sponsoring unaccompanied alien children

• $100 for continuances on immigration cases

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” proposes extensive changes across numerous federal agencies and programs, addressing both significant federal expenditures and various mechanisms for revenue generation.

Here are the key areas of federal expenditure addressed in these legislative proposals:

National Security and Defense:

Military Quality of Life: Significant appropriations for restoration and modernization of Marine Corps barracks ($230,480,000), base operating support ($119,000,000), and sustainment, restoration, and modernization for Army, Navy, Air Force, and Space Force ($1,000,000,000) for fiscal year 2025, available until September 30, 2029. Additional funds are allocated for family readiness, academic skills courses, tuition assistance, child care fee assistance, Temporary Lodging Expense Allowance, Impact Aid, military spouse professional licensure, Armed Forces Retirement Home facilities, and the Defense Community Infrastructure Program.

Shipbuilding: Substantial funding (over $17 billion for FY2025, available until September 30, 2029) is proposed for enhancing Department of Defense resources for shipbuilding, including expansion of training programs, production of turbine generators, additive manufacturing, next-generation techniques, procurement of specific ships like a second Virginia-class submarine ($4,600,000,000 for FY2026), two additional Guided Missile Destroyer (DDG) ships ($5,400,000,000), and various unmanned surface and underwater vessels (e.g., $1,534,000,000 for small unmanned surface vessel production, $1,800,000,000 for medium unmanned surface vessel production).

Integrated Air and Missile Defense: Large investments (over $20 billion for FY2025, available until September 30, 2029) are proposed for next-generation missile defense technologies, including Missile Defense Agency special programs, directed energy capabilities, classified military space superiority programs, national security space launch infrastructure, military satellites, hypersonic test beds, and space-based sensors. This also includes funding for layered homeland defense, accelerating hypersonic defense systems, and improving ground-based missile defense radars.

Munitions and Defense Supply Chain Resiliency: Significant appropriations (over $11 billion for FY2025, available until September 30, 2029) are dedicated to developing and producing various missiles, torpedoes, and maritime mines, expanding production capacity for long-range cruise missiles, and strengthening the industrial base through grants (e.g., $3,500,000,000 and $1,000,000,000 for the Industrial Base Fund).

Scaling Low-Cost Weapons: Funds (over $5 billion for FY2025, available until September 30, 2029) are allocated for programs such as the Global Technology Scout, expansion of the small unmanned aerial system industrial base ($1,100,000,000), Joint Fires Network, advanced command-and-control tools, and development of innovative military logistics and energy capabilities.

Efficiency and Cybersecurity: Appropriations for improving the Department of Defense’s efficiency and cybersecurity include $150,000,000 for business systems replacement and $200,000,000 for the deployment of automation and artificial intelligence to accelerate financial audits.

Air Superiority: Over $6 billion is allocated for increasing F-15EX aircraft production ($3,150,000,000), preventing the retirement of F-22 aircraft, and accelerating the Next Generation Adaptive Combat Aircraft program, among others.

Nuclear Forces: Over $9 billion is appropriated for risk reduction in the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program ($1,500,000,000), acceleration of the B-21 long-range bomber aircraft ($4,500,000,000), and development of a nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile ($2,000,000,000). An additional $3 billion is allocated to the National Nuclear Security Administration for deferred maintenance, facility construction, and warhead development.

United States Indo-Pacific Command: Nearly $3 billion is dedicated to enhancing capabilities within the Indo-Pacific Command area of operations, including funding for Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force exercises, infrastructure development ($1,100,000,000), and mission networks.

Readiness of the Armed Forces: Appropriations exceeding $5 billion are proposed for pilot programs on maritime spares and repair, various readiness initiatives for the Navy, Marine Corps, Army, and National Guard, and procurement of combat vehicles.

Border Support and Counter-Drug Missions: $1,250,000,000 is allocated to the Department of Defense for border support and counter-drug missions.

Homeland Security and Immigration:

Border Infrastructure: $46,500,000,000 for the construction, installation, and improvement of border barrier systems, access roads, and detection technology. An additional $5,000,000,000 is for the lease, acquisition, construction, or improvement of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facilities and checkpoints.

Personnel and Vehicles: $4,100,000,000 for hiring and training additional Border Patrol agents, Office of Field Operations Officers, and support personnel. Funds for retention and hiring bonuses ($600,000,000) and fleet vehicles ($813,000,000) are also included.

Technology and Vetting: $2,000,000,000 for non-intrusive inspection systems and $2,766,000,000 for border surveillance technologies. $673,000,000 for the biometric entry and exit system. $16,000,000 for CBP vetting activities and criminal history databases.

Drug Trafficking: $500,000,000 is appropriated to the Secretary of Homeland Security for combating drug trafficking, including fentanyl and its precursor chemicals. An additional $500,000,000 is allocated to the Department of Justice for similar efforts.

State and Local Support: $12,000,000,000 in grants to States for costs associated with assisting federal border security missions.

Immigration Enforcement (ICE): $45,000,000,000 for adult alien detention capacity and family residential centers. $8,000,000,000 for hiring additional ICE personnel. $14,400,000,000 for transportation and removal operations. Additional funds for IT investments ($700,000,000), facility upgrades ($550,000,000), and fleet modernization ($250,000,000).

Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR): $1,250,000,000 is appropriated for hiring support staff, immigration judges, and expanding courtroom capacity and infrastructure.

Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC): $3,000,000,000 to the Office of Refugee Resettlement to house, transport, and supervise UAC.

Justice Department Immigration Matters: $950,000,000 for compensating states/local subdivisions for incarcerating criminal aliens. $600,000,000 for investigating and prosecuting immigration matters, gang-related crimes, and child trafficking involving aliens.

Agriculture and Rural Development:

Nutrition Programs: Specifies federal and state shares for food assistance allotments, with a 100% federal share for fiscal years 2026-2027 and then 95%, subject to state quality control incentives.

Rural America Investment: $50,000,000 is allocated to the Farm Service Agency for FY2025 to carry out amendments related to the safety net. Substantial funding is extended or newly provided for conservation programs (e.g., $625,000,000 for FY2026, increasing to $700,000,000 for FY2029-2031 for certain programs) and watershed protection ($150,000,000 for FY2026). The Supplemental Agricultural Trade Promotion program receives $285,000,000 annually from FY2027.

Agricultural Research: Mandatory funding of $37,000,000 for the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research and $60,000,000 for scholarships at 1890 Institutions for FY2026. The competitive grant program under the Research Facilities Act is funded at $125,000,000 annually from FY2026.

Plant and Animal Health: $90,000,000 is allocated for Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention for FY2026. The Animal Disease Prevention and Management program receives $250,000,000 for fiscal years 2026-2030 and $75,000,000 for FY2031 and beyond.

Education and Workforce:

Student Loan Servicing: $500,000,000 is appropriated annually for administrative costs of direct student loan programs and part B.

PROMISE Grants: Funds remitted by institutions based on qualifying student loans, and additional necessary funds, are to be used for PROMISE grants to eligible institutions on a noncompetitive basis to support student success and collect information on promising practices.

Regulatory Repeals: Repeals regulations related to “90/10 rule” and “gainful employment” and restores July 1, 2020 regulations for closed school discharges and borrower defense to repayment.

Energy and Environment:

Energy Loan Guarantees: $5,000,000 is appropriated for administrative expenses associated with the Department of Energy loan guarantee expenses for the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act.

De-risking Compensation Program: $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 to establish a program compensating sponsors of covered energy projects (coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear) for unrecoverable losses due to qualifying federal actions.

Strategic Petroleum Reserve: $218,000,000 for maintenance and repairs, $582,000,000 for restoration and modernization, and $300,000,000 for life extension.

Water Infrastructure: $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 (available through Sep 30, 2034) for increasing the capacity of existing Bureau of Reclamation surface water storage facilities. An additional $500,000,000 is for restoring or increasing the capacity of existing Bureau of Reclamation conveyance facilities.

Environmental Rescissions: Rescissions of unobligated balances are mandated for various Inflation Reduction Act programs related to clean energy, climate resilience, and air pollution, indicating a reduction in federal spending in these areas.

Healthcare:

Medicaid and CHIP: Moratoriums on certain rules related to eligibility and long-term care facility staffing standards are imposed. Federal funding is prohibited for “specified gender transition procedures” and for payments to certain “prohibited entities” (e.g., those primarily engaged in family planning services that provide abortions, with narrow exceptions).

Affordable Care Act (ACA): Funds are appropriated for cost-sharing reduction payments for plan years beginning January 1, 2026, but with a limitation that these funds cannot be used for qualified health plans covering abortion (except to save the life of the mother).

Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs): $113,000,000 is appropriated to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Program Management Account for fiscal year 2025 to carry out PBM accountability provisions, and $20,000,000 to the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services for oversight.

Transportation and Infrastructure:

Coast Guard Assets: Over $19 billion is appropriated for fiscal year 2025 (available until September 30, 2029) for the acquisition, sustainment, improvement, and operation of Coast Guard assets, including fixed and rotary wing aircraft, unmanned aircraft systems, Offshore Patrol Cutters, Fast Response Cutters, Polar Security Cutters, and Arctic Security Cutters, as well as shoreside infrastructure and depot maintenance.

Air Traffic Control: Over $12 billion is allocated for air traffic control staffing and modernization for fiscal year 2025 (available until September 30, 2029), including funds for tower and terminal radar approach control facility replacement ($2,160,000,000), radar systems ($3,000,000,000), telecommunications infrastructure ($4,750,000,000), runway safety projects, and air traffic controller recruitment and training ($1,000,000,000).

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts: $256,657,000 is appropriated for capital repair, restoration, maintenance backlog, and security structures for fiscal year 2025.

Here are the key areas of revenue generation addressed in these legislative proposals:

Immigration Fees: The bill introduces or modifies numerous fees to be collected by the Attorney General, Secretary of Homeland Security, or Secretary of Health and Human Services, with some portion or all deposited into the general fund of the Treasury:

Asylum Fees: A new fee is imposed on initial asylum applications.

Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Fees: Fees for initial EAD applications for asylum applicants (initial amount $1,250) and parolees (initial amount $2,000) are mandated. A fee for renewal/extension of EADs for temporary protected status (TPS) aliens (initial amount $500) is also established.

Parole Fee: A fee for each alien paroled into the United States (initial amount $1,500) is imposed.

Unaccompanied Alien Child (UAC) Sponsor Fee: A fee (initial amount $2,500) is to be collected from UAC sponsors as partial reimbursement for care costs.

Visa Integrity Fee: A fee (initial amount $25) is imposed on nonimmigrant visa applicants.

Yearly Asylum Fee: A new yearly fee (initial amount $1,000) is established for asylum applicants.

Continuance Fee: A fee (initial amount $100) is imposed for continuances granted in immigration court proceedings, with an exception for exceptional circumstances.

Renewal/Extension of EAD for Parolees: A fee (initial amount $1,000) is imposed for renewals/extensions.

Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) Fees: New or modified fees for various applications and appeals, including adjusting status (initial $1,500), waiver of inadmissibility (initial $1,000), TPS (initial $500), appeals from immigration judges (initial $900), appeals from Board of Immigration Appeals (initial $1,000), appeals in practitioner disciplinary cases (initial $1,000), motions to reopen or reconsider (initial $500), suspension of deportation (initial minimum $600), and cancellation of removal (initial minimum $1,000).

ESTA Fee: The minimum fee for the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is increased to $10, with a total minimum fee of $13.

Immigration User Fees: The fee for certain immigration inspections or pre-inspections is increased to a minimum of $10.

EVUS Fee: A fee for the Electronic Visa Update System (EVUS) with a minimum initial amount of $30 is established.

Fees for Aliens in Absentia and Inadmissible Apprehension: Fees for sponsors of unaccompanied alien children who fail to appear ($1,000), for aliens ordered removed in absentia who are arrested ($2,000), and for inadmissible aliens apprehended by CBP ($1,500) are introduced.

Asylum Application Authority: The Attorney General is required to charge fees for asylum applications and is explicitly granted authority to set additional adjudication and naturalization fees.

Natural Resources and Energy Fees

Natural Gas Exports/Imports: A non-refundable charge of $1,000,000 is imposed for each application to export or import natural gas from/to countries without a free trade agreement.

Expedited Permitting: Applicants can elect for expedited review of natural gas authorizations by paying a fee equal to the lesser of 1% of the expected construction cost or $10,000,000.

Oil and Gas Leasing Fees: A $10,000 application fee for commingling of production from multiple sources is introduced, with revenues deposited as miscellaneous receipts. A $5,000 fee is established for a permit-by-rule process for oil and gas drilling. A $5,000 permitting fee is imposed for certain oil and gas leases on non-Federal land impacting Federal mineral estates.

Oil and Gas Royalty Rates: The offshore oil and gas royalty rate is set to “not less than 12.5 percent, but not more than 18 3/4 percent”. The onshore oil and gas royalty rate is changed from 16 2/3% to 12.5% for leases issued on or after the enactment date. New reinstated leases will have a royalty rate of not less than 16 2/3%.

Coal Leasing Royalties: The coal royalty rate is changed to not less than 12.5%.

NEPA Project Sponsor Fees: Fees for environmental reviews are introduced, charging 125% of anticipated costs if prepared by the lead agency, or 100% if prepared by the project sponsor. These fees are deposited as miscellaneous receipts.

Protest Fees: A fee is established for filing protests related to oil and gas lease parcels, rights-of-way, or permits to drill, including a base fee ($150), a per-page assessment ($5 per page over 10), and an additional assessment ($10) per additional parcel/right-of-way/permit. These fees are adjusted annually for inflation and deposited as miscellaneous receipts.

Renewable Energy Fees on Federal Lands: New acreage rent for wind and solar rights-of-way is introduced, calculated by a specified equation. Capacity fees are also imposed, based on the greater of the acreage rent or 4.58% of gross proceeds from electricity sales, with a 10% reduction factor for multiple-use lands. Late payments incur a 10% penalty. All revenues collected are deposited into the general fund of the Treasury.

Financial and Regulatory Fees:

Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) Filing Fee: A filing fee equal to that for a civil action ($402 per the source text for 28 USC 1914(a), but not explicitly stated as such, it’s an outside detail for understanding) is established for claims and appeals filed with the MSPB, to be returned if the individual is the prevailing party. Revenues are deposited into miscellaneous receipts of the Treasury.

Other Financial Measures: Unobligated fees from the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board are transferred to the general fund of the Treasury. Excess amounts in the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection’s Civil Penalty Fund and the Financial Research Fund are to be transferred to the general fund of the Treasury.

Transportation and Infrastructure Fees:

Vessel Tonnage Duties: The fixed amounts for vessel tonnage duties are removed, suggesting a shift to potentially higher or more flexible rates.

Motor Vehicle Registration Fee: An annual registration fee is imposed on the owner of a vehicle registered by a State motor vehicle department: $250 for covered electric vehicles and $100 for covered hybrid vehicles. States must collect and remit these fees to the Highway Trust Fund, with penalties for non-compliance.

Tax Policy Changes:

State and Local Tax (SALT) Deduction Limitation: The limitation on individual deductions for certain State and local taxes (SALT cap) is explicitly maintained/extended, limiting the deduction to $10,000 for most taxpayers, and increasing it to $100,000 for 2025 . This change increases taxable income for affected individuals, thereby increasing federal tax revenue.

Clean Energy Credit Terminations/Phase-Outs: The bill terminates several clean vehicle tax credits, the energy efficient home improvement credit, and phases out or restricts other credits such as the advanced manufacturing production credit and the credit for certain energy property. These actions would increase federal revenue by eliminating or reducing tax expenditures.

Unfair Foreign Taxes: New provisions are introduced to enforce remedies against unfair foreign taxes, including increased tax rates on foreign persons from discriminatory foreign countries . This is designed to increase federal tax revenue.

Silencer Transfer Tax: A new transfer tax is imposed on firearms, specifically silencers, at a rate of 10% of the manufacturer’s price, with a minimum of $200 for the initial transfer and $100 for subsequent transfers .

De Minimis Entry Privilege: The de minimis threshold for commercial shipments, which allows goods under a certain value to enter without formal entry or duties, is reduced from $800 to $1 . This would significantly increase customs revenue.

Remittance Transfer Excise Tax: A new 4% excise tax is imposed on the amount of remittance transfers made by a “remittance transfer provider” . This is a new source of federal revenue.

Penalties for Taxpayer Information Disclosure: Increased penalties are proposed for unauthorized disclosures of taxpayer information, which would generate additional revenue through fines.