Washington – The House on Wednesday approved the final version of President Biden’s $ 1.9 billion coronavirus relief bill, giving the new president a significant victory in legislation as he works to stabilize an economy that is still struggling to return from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The bill, known as the U.S. Rescue Plan Act, was passed by 220 to 211. One Democrat – Representative Jared Golden of Maine – joined all Republicans to vote against the measure. Golden earlier voted against the House version of the bill passed last week. The legislation will soon be passed to Mr. Biden’s desk is going, where he will sign it on Friday, the White House said. The Senate approved the bill along party lines after a marathon voting session Saturday.
Only 49 days after his presidency, Mr. Biden assures that this could be the crucial domestic policy fulfillment of his presidency, by injecting hundreds of billions of dollars into the economy and his government’s efforts to accelerate vaccinations, reopen schools and empower unemployed Americans. back to work. The president, vice president Kamala Harris and first lady dr. Jill Biden plans to travel to promote the package once it is approved by Congress and signed into law on Friday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
The fast-paced passage of the bill is reminiscent of former President Barack Obama’s successful push for US recovery and reinvestment law shortly after taking office in 2009 to address the Great Recession. But the bill cost less than half of the U.S. rescue plan, and it looks like Mr. Biden, who was vice-president at the time, came to the conclusion that it’s better to get bigger, even if it means sacrificing some dual support.
The U.S. bailout plan provides $ 1,400 direct payments to individuals earning up to $ 75,000 annually, $ 350 billion in aid to state and local governments and $ 14 billion in vaccine distribution. The bill also provides $ 130 billion to elementary, high schools and high schools to help with the safe reopening.
It includes an additional $ 300 billion in weekly unemployment benefits through September and an extended tax credit of up to $ 3,600 per child, initially distributed in monthly installments. The child tax credit could yield 4 million children out of poverty, according to an analysis by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.
More than $ 50 billion will be distributed to small businesses, including $ 7 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program. The bill also provides $ 25 billion in aid to small and medium-sized restaurants, which suffered significantly during the pandemic.
The measure increases the subsidy for the purchase of health insurance to people with all incomes under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a provision that has been particularly controversial for Republicans who oppose the bill. It also encourages states to expand Medicaid under the ACA by making the federal government pay for new recipients. Several million people could save hundreds of dollars in health care costs once the bill becomes law.
Psaki told reporters on Tuesday that many Americans will receive their stimulus checks by the end of the month, and that they do not have the signature of Mr. Praying will not carry. Former President Donald Trump has had his name printed on aid in earlier rounds.
Democrats announced the economic relief package as a lifeline to families hardest hit by the pandemic. But Republicans in both chambers criticized the $ 1.9 billion price and size measure, as well as the Democrats’ decision to push the plan through Congress without GOP support.
Last week, a version of the president’s emergency relief plan passed the House, but the Senate amended the package and approved it in a 50-49 party vote. The lower house voted Wednesday on the Senate-amended measure.
Changes in the Senate-amended measure include lowering an unemployment insurance benefit from $ 400 a week to $ 300 a week, but extending it until September 6 instead of ending the additional assistance in August. It also did not make the first $ 10,200 unemployment benefits taxable for households earning less than $ 150,000.
The bill, amended by the Senate, also restricted the right to review directly. These compromises were negotiated to satisfy moderate Democrats in the Senate, especially Senator Joe Manchin. Since the Democrats have a majority of 50 seats in the Senate, they need the support of all 50 Democrats to pass any controversial legislation, which means members like Manchin need to be appeased to pass bills.
Legislators used a process known as budget reconciliation to usher in the emergency relief plan through both chambers, making it possible for the Senate to pass with just a simple majority without relying on Republican support. But the package had to comply with certain rules of the reconciliation process, which resulted in the minimum wage increase of $ 15 being stripped of the original proposal passed in the House.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont Independent who agrees with Democrats, introduced an amendment to the final bill to raise the minimum wage by 2025 to $ 15 per hour, but it failed with a 42-58 vote.