Republican Sen. John Cornyn said he and Alex Padilla, a Democrat, are bargaining with the White House on their proposal to give states flexibility to use some unspent pandemic relief funds on infrastructure projects, which would free up billions of federal dollars.

Cornyn and Padilla are making their proposal as an amendment to the roughly $550 billion infrastructure package backed by President Joe Biden that is heading toward a Senate vote in the next few days.

“We’re making some progress,” Cornyn, Texas’ senior senator, said of his talks with the White House. Padilla, who represents California, said they are “almost there” on getting enough support to add their amendment to the infrastructure legislation, which would release money for states to spend on projects in addition to the $550 billion.

A White House official said the administration was in discussion and working to ensure the proposed amendment didn’t undermine the effort against the coronavirus.... Read More: Newsmax