The United States Senate voted on Wednesday in favor of the open debate on an anti-Asian Asian American hate crimes bill.

The 92-6 votes to move forward the debate on COVID-19 Hate crimes act clears a key hurdle to its final passage vote in the chamber. 

The bill intends to speed up the administrating process of hate crimes. The violence against Asian Americans has skyrocketed during the coronavirus pandemic.

"I'm so glad that our Republican colleagues have voted with us to proceed with this legislation. This was never intended as gotcha legislation. It was always intended as bipartisan legislation," Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer said after the vote.

The bill would also call on the federal administration to offer guidance on "best practices to mitigate racially discriminatory language" describing the coronavirus pandemic."

Schumer and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has started negotiating a deal on amendments to the bill, local media reported, noting the first amendment vote is expected to be on a bipartisan bill called No Hate Act, which aimed to improve the reporting of hate crimes, beef up hate crimes training for law enforcement and set up a hate crimes hotline.