WASHINGTON – Congressional leaders have reached a nearly $900 billion deal to combat the coronavirus, which will include a new round of direct payments to families, according to lawmakers who are attempting to pass the aid package by the end of the week.
After months of stalemate, the new deal marked a breakthrough at a critical time in the pandemic, when the distribution of vaccines continued, but hospital admissions reached record highs and a new round of trade restrictions weighed on the economy.
It was assumed that, in addition to direct inspections, the package under discussion would include USD 300 per year for implementation. The state also provides $500,000 a week for the expansion of unemployment insurance, funds for the distribution of vaccines, schools, small businesses and medical facilities, rental assistance and other emergency assistance. Its size, just under $900 billion, marks a compromise between the two parties’ positions, with the Republicans spending more than $500 billion and the Democrats less than $2.4 trillion in their bill passed by the House earlier this year.
We’re still in discussion and I think we’re going to get there, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) said Wednesday afternoon.
While much of the agreement reflected the proposal of a bipartisan group, members of Congress were still haggling over other elements of the overall package they hoped to adopt later this week. The legislators expect the bill to be attached to the Annual Expenditure Act in support of the government after the current funding expires at 12.01 pm. Saturday.
The aid package discussed on Wednesday aimed to address two of the most pressing issues: funding for national and local governments and liability protection for companies and other entities operating during a pandemic, the legislators said.
But congressional leaders should add a second round of direct checks, probably less significant than the first round, which yielded $1,200 for individuals and $500 for dependents at the beginning of the year. Senate Majority Whip John Thune, R., S.D., told reporters Wednesday that he expected the checks to be in the range of $600 to $700 per person.
Congress noted that negotiations were still ongoing and that no final agreement had yet been reached.
Speaker of the House
Nancy Pelosi.
(D., California), leader of the minority in the Senate.
Chuck Schumer
(D., N.Y.), minority speaker in the House.
Kevin McCarthy
(R., California) and Mr. M. McConnell met several times on Tuesday, spoke late, and continued the discussions on Wednesday.
treasurer
Steven Mnuchin
He also joined the meetings by telephone on Wednesday. The
Assets
The administration had previously offered to send 600 cheques.
We are on track to develop a targeted pandemic package that could be approved by both houses with a bipartisan majority, McConnell said in the Senate on Wednesday. Last week, Mr McConnell called for us to go beyond the two most contentious issues and seek a closer agreement.
We’re very close. We’re doing very well, Schumer told reporters Wednesday, noting that Democrats convinced Republicans to add a second round of direct checks. They didn’t want to write cheques of encouragement, so that’s what we fought for. Schumer told Democrats in the Senate that the bill would also include $25 billion for a new emergency rent relief program, according to a demonstrator familiar with the debate.
Schumer said the Democrats will seek more help from the new administration next year. Democrats said Tuesday that states and municipalities will need more help next year to continue paying police and teachers’ salaries, partly due to the budget deficit.
Legislators working on the Coronavirus bill face two challenges: Supporting national and local authorities and protecting accountability. Gerald F. Seib of the WSJ explained why these issues are important and what a compromise might look like. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
elected president
Joe Biden
He welcomed the new agreement on Wednesday, but reiterated that he sees it as a down payment on the extra support that will be needed next year.
We have to get back to that. Many state and local authorities, including mine, are still in a very difficult position, he said.
Journalist Josh Gottheimer.
(D., N.J.), co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group of 50 legislators from the House of Representatives. The leaders of the group participated in the development of a bipartisan proposal that the leaders of Congress used as a basis for their negotiations. But after nine months of absolute stalemate with people in pain? Something’s better than nothing, he said.
The legislators only have a few days to finalise the aid package and the expenditure account and to get through both houses. The legislators and their assistants said they were making good progress with the bill throughout the year. The package must first be accepted by the House and then sent to the Senate.
Congressional leaders hoped to keep the total value of the package at about $900 billion and worked on Wednesday to see how the elements would fit together. According to people familiar with the discussions, there is talk of reducing the extended period of unemployment insurance from 16 to 10 weeks to finance the second round of direct controls. There was also a debate in Congress as to whether the 90 billion dollars should be included in the 90 billion dollars. The Federal Emergency Management Agency received $1,000,000 in emergency aid.
The legislator stated that the amount of the checks would depend on the composition of the rest of the package, but would probably be less than $1,200.
That’s progress. That’s not what I want or think it should be, Sen.
Josh Hawley
(R., Mo.) who takes care of
Senator Bernie Sanders
(I., Vt.) to add another set of checks for $1,200.
The main members of Congress, including House President Nancy Pelosi, met several times on Tuesday to negotiate a coronavirus control agreement.
Photo:
Lenin Nolly/Zuma Press
For weeks, Democrats have been trying to borrow money for state and local governments struggling with budget deficits after months of pandemic-related closures and economic downturn. Republicans oppose it on the grounds that not all states need help.
Meanwhile, lawmakers McConnell and GOP lobbied for legal protection for businesses, schools and non-profit organizations that worked during the pandemic, saying liability limits would help fully restore the economy. Democrats said they were worried that the GOP’s proposals went too far and that they did not encourage companies to take the necessary steps to protect workers.
The leaders of the four largest members of Congress personally began negotiations on Tuesday, a day after a bipartisan group released a $748 billion bill that extends the framework for an emergency aid agreement through March. The group originally proposed $908 billion in funding and liability protection for the state and local authorities in a separate bill.
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The main bill of $748 billion, which the bipartisan group unanimously supported, includes an additional $300 billion for state unemployment insurance recipients for 16 weeks, $300 billion for small businesses, including another round of wage protection, $35 billion for healthcare workers and $82 billion for schools.
Schumer said Tuesday that he hopes to support a $6 billion proposal to distribute the Covid 19 vaccine, with the first doses of the vaccine being administered this week. The bipartite coalition also included about $10 billion to test and detect the coronavirus.
The leaders of the Democrats and the GOP said Congress should not postpone until they have adopted the coronavirus package. McConnell said lawmakers may reconsider funding and liability protection for state and local governments next year because Biden plans to provide more help.
President Trump, who has demanded a new round of security clearances for most Americans, is waiting to see what a possible deal looks like according to a White House spokesperson.
Kayleigh McEnaney.
said Tuesday.
He said he would like to see those stimulating controls, but his priority is ultimately the relief of the American people, she said. We hope an agreement will be reached.
Email Christine Peterson at [email protected] and Andrew Dueren at [email protected].
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