President Biden on Thursday signed into law the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill. The bill passed the Senate over the weekend and was sent back to the House, where it won a final passage vote on Wednesday by party lines.
The bill contains provisions that address a vast portion of the economy, including another round of direct payments to Americans, significant funding for K-12 schools to reopen and for state and local governments, among many other provisions.
Among other things, the bill includes:
- Another round of direct payments to Americans ($1,400 per eligible individual to a phased out income cap of $80,000; further payments to couples and those with dependents)
- A continuation of current unemployment insurance levels ($300/week additional federally-provided benefits) through September 6, a deadline one month longer than the original House-passed version. Current benefits were set to expire March 14.
- $160 billion for COVID-19 vaccine and testing programs
- $360 billion in aid for state, local governments
- Health coverage and paid leave benefits for COVID-affected individuals
- Refundable tax credits for low and middle-income families and expanded child tax credits
- $170 billion for K-12 school
- $200 million for the Department of Labor to carry out worker protection activities
- $4 billion for USDA commodity purchases and distribution
- $25 billion for small restaurants
- $10 billion for the President to use the Defense Production Act to purchase and distribute PPE, vaccines and tests to prioritized industries
- $45 billion for rental assistance
- $23 billion for airlines and airports
- $23 billion for small businesses under the Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Paycheck Protection Program
The original House version of the bill included a section that would have raised the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour over several years was ultimately not included in the final package after the Senate parliamentarian ruled that the provision was not allowed under the rules governing the budget reconciliation process, which was the method used to pass the bill along simple majorities in the House and Senate.
