Next stimulus bill: $908 billion bipartisan plan vs. ‘skinny’ $500 billion proposal – CNET

Two new stimulus bills are now competing to be put up for a Congressional vote before the end of the year. It’s been nearly nine months since the CARES Act funded a range of economic aid to individuals and families. And at the end of December, the final safeguards from the CARES Act expire, leaving tens of millions of people to face hunger, debt, potential job loss and eviction as the money runs dry.

“We’re in the middle of drafting as we speak, and so … Monday is kind of the goal,” Representative Tom Reed, who is a co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus, said on Friday of passing some form of relief legislation before the end of the year. “This is about making sure that the money is allocated to those that are most in need.”

The two new stimulus proposals have major differences. A bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives suggest a $908 billion framework, while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is pushing a roughly $500 billion (we think) revision of a Senate Republican plan that has twice previously failed to advance. 

Neither one includes a second stimulus payment this time around, but another direct payment for those who qualify could potentially pass next year. The $908 billion proposal is backed by a group of Republican and Democratic senators, and has the conditional support of top US leaders, including President-elect Joe Biden and a growing number of Republicans. (House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer backed it as “the basis for immediate” negotiations.) 

Let’s take a look at the major categories of funding that are still being discussed. We recently updated this story with new details.

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Next stimulus checks: What to expect

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More federal unemployment benefits

The CARES Act passed in March gave $600 per week to unemployed workers, on top of their usual unemployment check. When this funding lapsed at the end of July, President Donald Trump signed an executive action to pay a $300 per week bonus. That money will run out by Dec. 31.

The bipartisan proposal — created by more than a dozen Representative and Senators — would provide $300 per week in additional federal unemployment benefits for four months. Jeff Stein of the Washington Post reported the bipartisan group could make the payments retroactive for missed months.

McConnell’s plan would extend the CARES Act’s Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, or PUA, and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, or PEUC, programs for one month into January but does not set a dollar amount.

A smaller proposal forwarded by Senators Sherrod Brown, Chuck Schumer and other Senate Democrats called the American Worker Holiday Relief Act would focus solely on extending the $600 unemployment benefits retroactively from September 2020 through October 2021.

Extended Payroll Protection Program to help pay employees

The Payroll Protection Program initially provided forgivable loans to small businesses to help cover worker wages and help keep employees on the books instead of laying them off. 

The new bipartisan proposal would add $300 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses. McConnell’s plan would also provide $300 billion to fund the loans.

Renewal of renter protections from evictions

The CARES Act established a nationwide ban on evictions for renters who were late on rent. When that was set to expire, Trump extended the ban, but that extension, too, is set to expire at the end of the year. 

According to the Washington Post, the new bipartisan proposal would guard against evictions through “rental assistance funding.” In a press conference following the announcement, the Senators provided little beyond calling the protections “housing and rental assistance.”

In a description of his bill the Senator reportedly sent to fellow Republicans, McConnell does not mention continuing eviction protections.

Funding for health care and coronavirus vaccinations

With the country poised to release the first wave of coronavirus vaccines as soon as this month, the proposals turn toward funding distribution of the vaccine.

“On COVID relief, we acknowledged the recent positive developments on vaccine development and the belief that it is essential to significantly fund distribution efforts to get us from vaccine to vaccination,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement Tuesday.

The bipartisan proposal would provide $50 billion for vaccine distribution along with funding coronavirus testing and contact tracing efforts. McConnell’s bill sets out $16 billion for testing and tracing, with support for vaccine manufacturing.

Liability protection from COVID-19 lawsuits

Republican legislators have supported limiting COVID-19 liability since this summer, which are designed to curtail a rush of lawsuits against businesses, schools, hospitals and other organizations from people who said these institutions caused them to acquire the coronavirus, except for instances of gross negligence. 

The bipartisan plan sets out a six-month moratorium on some coronavirus-related lawsuits against organizations, giving states enough time to create their own liability protections, the Senators said. McConnell’s liability protections would be more sweeping and preempt state laws.

Money for schools and childcare

Funding for education has been a part of proposals for more economic assistance going back to May. The bipartisan plan would set aside $82 billion for education and another $10 billion for child care. McConnell’s plan would also pay for education and child care, setting out $105 billion to “help get students back to school,” from elementary schools to higher education.

No additional stimulus check until 2021?

The bipartisan bill would leave out a second economic stimulus check to keep the overall cost of the bill down.

McConnell’s plan also leaves out another direct payment. After President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in on Jan. 20, his administration could seek a follow-up bill with a bigger price tag that could include a second payment of up to $1,200.

While we wait to see how and when negotiations shake out over the current proposals, here’s what you need to know about coronavirus hardship loans, unemployment insurance and what you can do if you’ve lost your job.