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By Norm Elrod
(CBS Detroit) — Congressional leaders are moving closer to a second stimulus package that could provide some economic relief from the COVID crisis. But time is running short before the holiday break, with many major economic stimulus programs set to expire.
In a promising sign, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy twice on Tuesday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who had been involved in previous negotiations with Pelosi, called in by phone. The goal was to come to some kind of agreement on the relief package. And all participants agree that progress was made.
As McConnell framed it, the group is “making significant progress,” and he’s “optimistic that we’re going to be able to complete an understanding sometime soon.”
>>READ: Stimulus Package Update: Plan Should ‘Give As Generous Aid To Local Governments As Possible,’ Economist Says
The deal under discussion is a $748 billion package that combines unemployment benefits and aid for small businesses, among other programs supported across party lines. Specifically, that would mean four more months of an additional $300 per week of unemployment payments, along with four more months of standard unemployment benefits and payments to those who don’t qualify for standard unemployment benefits. Small businesses would also receive $300 billion in aid. Another $25 billion would be set aside for rental assistance, with the current eviction moratorium extended through January of 2021.
“We need to get help to the people that need it most as quickly as possible,” said Utah Senator Mitt Romney on CBS This Morning on Tuesday. “We better have it by the holiday, because the day after Christmas you have millions of people who will lose unemployment benefits, so we need to act.”
A separate $160 billion bill lumps together aid for state and local governments and business liability protections, the two initiatives which have been holding up relief efforts. Aid for states and localities is supported by Democrats and opposed by Republicans. The coronavirus liability shield is supported by Republicans and opposed by Democrats. This bill could be jettisoned from the final stimulus deal if it doesn’t end up with enough support.
>>READ: Stimulus Package Update: Are Politicians Finally Ready To Make A Deal?
Stimulus checks are not part of either deal, though some backing for another round of payments exists on both sides of aisle. Independent Senator Bernie Sanders and Republican Senator Josh Hawley have been outspoken in their support of another check. Some progressive House Democrats also made their support known Tuesday in a letter to Congressional leaders.
The possibility of a second stimulus package emerged once again early last week, when a bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators proposed a $908 billion plan that seemed to have an avenue to becoming law. Optimism grew throughout the week, even as details remained elusive. But by the end of the week, hope faded with Congressional disfunction back on full display.
However, this week, with time running short before the holiday break, and many major economic stimulus programs set to expire, lawmakers unveiled two more bills. These bills separated the initiatives with wide support from the two problem provisions.
Congress is also dealing with the larger issue of funding the government. Late last week they passed a continuing resolution that funded it for another week. If broader funding legislation isn’t passed and signed by the president by Friday, the government will shut down.
A stimulus package, if an agreement is reached, would be attached to this government spending measure.
>>READ: Stimulus Package Update: Lawmakers Announce Bipartisan Coronavirus Relief Plan
The first stimulus package passed back in March, when the federal government came to the economy’s rescue with the $2.2 trillion CARES Act. The aid included increased unemployment benefits, the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program (PUA) and the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program (PEUC) among other programs. The $600 in weekly federal unemployment benefits added on top of state benefits ended in July. The PUA payments, to freelance workers who don’t qualify for traditional unemployment insurance, run out near the end of the year. So do the PEUC payments, which adds 13 weeks for those who have exhausted their state benefits, which tend to last between 20 and 26 weeks. All three programs have helped recipients pay for basic needs, shelter among them.
Eviction protections put in place by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and various states are set to expire at the end of the year as well. The CDC order shields those making under $99,000 per year from eviction through the end of 2020, if the pandemic has caused them to lose income. Some cities and states instituted their own assistance and protection programs, which are also running out.
State unemployment benefits, even those extended by PEUC, have already ended for many who lost jobs early in the economic crisis. That process continues as more people use up their benefits. In November, those unemployed long-term (at least 27 weeks) rose by 385,000 to 3.9 million. The long-term unemployed now account for 36.9 percent of all unemployed.
Updated Wednesday, December 16 @ 11:00 a.m.
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