Trump s border wall and a âthree-martini lunchâ: What the GOP fought to save in a second COVID bill
Package includes $600 checks, $300 unemployment boost, $284B for PPP and $1.4 billion for Trump s border wall
December 21, 2020 3:43PM (UTC)
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) talks with reporters following the weekly Republican Senate conference meeting in the Mansfield Room at the U.S. Capitol December 01, 2020 in Washington, DC. The Senate GOP leaders were asked about the chances of Congress passing another coronavirus relief bill along with must-pass government funding legislation. (Tom Williams-Pool/Getty Images)
A second stimulus package is on the way!
Congressional leaders finally agreed on a deal. They decided on December 20 for the $900 billion economic relief package. Unfortunately, it’s not the same amount as the first one, under the $2 trillion Cares Act that was passed in March. CBS reports some Americans will receive $600 instead of $1200. Here’s a breakdown of everything you need to know:
How much will I get and how do I know if I qualify?
The package would send direct payments of $600 to most Americans down from the $1,200 passed in March as part of the CARES Act. Families will also get $600 per child. Individuals who earned up to $75,000 per year and couples who made up to $150,000 in 2019 will receive the full sum. The payments will phase out until they stop for individuals and couples who made $99,000 and $198,000, respectively. Another source points out the “$600 will be directed toward each ‘child dependent,’ which suggests that adults who are nevertheless
Here’s what’s in the new $900 billion stimulus package
Most Americans will get a $600 stimulus check and the unemployed will get an additional $300 per week.
By Rachel Siegel, Jeff Stein, Mike DeBonisThe Washington Post
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WASHINGTON Congressional leaders brokered a deal on a roughly $900 billion relief bill Sunday night, with promises to pass the legislation as soon as possible.
The bill would extend aid to millions of struggling households through stimulus checks, enhanced federal unemployment benefits, aid for small businesses, schools, and child care, as well as for vaccine distribution.
The bill comes at a critical time for the recovery as the coronavirus pandemic is overwhelming health-care systems and scores of Americans were set to lose federal aid by the end of the year. Bill language was released late Sunday, and The Washington Post confirmed some details of what’s in and out of the bill.
Bipartisan US “relief” bill stiffs workers and unemployed, gives billions more to business
Late Sunday night, congressional leaders from both parties signaled their acceptance of a roughly $900 billion coronavirus relief bill that includes generous handouts to large companies while leaving jobless workers and their families with crumbs. The bill is expected to pass both the House and Senate by Monday afternoon and be attached to a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill. President Donald Trump has signaled his intention to sign the bill into law.
The package, which Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called a “strong shot in the arm,” does nowhere near enough to make whole the over 10 million people who have lost their jobs since March and the millions whose hours or wages have been reduced.
There are more than 20 million Americans collecting unemployment benefits, according to the Labor Department.
$300 weekly enhancement
The $300 boost is available to all workers receiving unemployment benefits, like the prior $600 weekly supplement provided by the CARES Act that lapsed in July.
The subsidy, which comes on top of the aid workers receive each week, is not retroactive. It is available from Dec. 26 through March 14.
PUA and PEUC extended
The legislation would also extend two programs created by the CARES Act: Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, which pays benefits to self-employed, gig, freelance and part-time workers generally ineligible for state unemployment insurance; and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, which pays extra weeks of benefits to individuals who exhausted their state benefits.