Washington -- The Big Three automakers would get $25 billion in loans from a federal program to help develop more fuel-efficient cars if legislation being drafted by Republican Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond is approved.

To qualify, General Motors, Chrysler and Ford would have to prove an ability to survive financially in the long term, the bill states. And the legislation would ensure taxpayers get a share of the companies' profits and equity.

On the Senate floor Monday, Bond said "it would be a disaster" not to help the auto industry.

"We cannot afford to pull the plug on the manufacturing backbone of rural America," he said.

General Motors, Ford and Chrysler say they need an immediate cash infusion because of tight credit and declining sales. Their plea for aid faces its first hurdle today, when the Senate is expected to consider a procedural vote that could determine whether a rescue plan moves forward.

The emergency money in Bond's bill, co-sponsored by GOP Sen. George Voinovich of Ohio, would come from a Department of Energy program approved by Congress in September.

In Missouri, 221,000 jobs depend on the auto industry, including 36,200 people employed by the automakers, according to the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. Auto-related jobs account for 8 percent of the state's work force and $7.6 billion in wages.

There are five auto plants in the state: two Chrysler plants and one Ford plant in St. Louis, one Ford plant in Claycomo, and one General Motors Corp. plant in Wentzville.

Democrats -- unlikely to support Bond's plan because they say it would siphon money from a program needed to make cars more fuel-efficient -- want to provide $25 billion in loans to the auto industry by tapping into the Treasury Department's $700 billion rescue plan for the nation's financial markets.

Bond and Voinovich had supported the Democrats' plan earlier in the week, but it stalled in Congress after most Republicans and President Bush opposed it.

It's not clear whether the Democrats controlling the Senate will allow a vote on Bond's bill.

Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill "needs more financial information before she can make a decision" on whether to support any aid bill, said her spokeswoman. McCaskill was scheduled to meet with GM officials Wednesday.