Senate passes federal bailout plan, House set for new vote Friday

The U.S. Senate just voted overwhelmingly to support a revised version the $700 billion federal bailout plan that the House rejected on Monday. The bill passed 75 to 24. The House is set for another vote on Friday, and politicians in both parties say it’s likely to pass this time, according to The New York Times.

The stock market, including a number of big-name tech companies like Google and Apple, took a sharp plunge Monday after the plan’s initial defeat, although the market has since partly bounced back. We got divided responses when we surveyed entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and other Silicon Valley experts on the plan, with some saying there’s no other way out of the current financial mess, and others saying they want to see alternatives.

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It’s also worth noting that the Senate bill includes a significant research and development tax credit for tech companies that expired in December. The Senate version includes provisions such as $150 billion in tax breaks for individuals and businesses and an increase in Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. coverage up to $250,000, above the current $100,000 coverage amount.

The tax breaks include incentives for use of renewable energy and relief for 24 million households that have to pay an alternative minimum tax. The bailout money would be released in tranches, with the first set at $350 billion.