Hello, Friends —
On Friday afternoon, the House passed the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act,” a massive, multi-trillion-dollar relief bill designed to address the impacts of coronavirus on individuals, businesses, and America as a whole.
Providing economic relief to those harmed by COVID-19 is imperative. I am deeply concerned, however, that lawmakers have used a national emergency as an opportunity to fund pet projects, ideological wish lists, and good old-fashioned porkbarrel spending. Provisions like bailouts for the Kennedy Center, and 350 million dollars for refugee programs, have no place whatsoever in a coronavirus relief package. The increased spending on refugee programs is particularly misguided and counterintuitive: with billions of people worldwide being told to shelter in place, now is the exact wrong time to spend American taxpayers’ money on international programs to help people move and resettle.
With American lives at stake, this bill should not have been a place for political gamesmanship.
I was disappointed by these inclusions, and by the unorthodox way in which this bill was brought to the House for a vote. My friend and colleague Thomas Massie objected to the procedure on valid Constitutional grounds, but he was overruled.
The excessive and wasteful provisions secured by House and Senate Democrat leaders should concern all Americans — and especially our younger citizens. America is over 21 trillion dollars in debt, and with the passage of this bill, we will have to borrow trillions of dollars, primarily from China, to pay for coronavirus relief — even though China’s inaction, distortion, and outright lies were the largest factor in COVID-19’s rapid global spread.
It adds insult to injury that America’s youngest generations will have to pay China back, with interest, for a global crisis caused by China.
I am proud to have recently introduced the “No CHINA Act,” legislation to block coronavirus relief funds from being disbursed to businesses in the United States owned by the Chinese government.
As the Nation and the Congress continue responding to the epidemic, I hope the guardrails of the No CHINA Act will be included in future funding packages.
Despite my concerns about the way the bill was drafted and brought to a vote, it passed by “voice vote,” and now heads to President Trump’s desk to be signed into law.
Some notable elements of the bill are below:
- Direct payments to qualified individuals: $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for couples, and $500 for children. These checks will be sent to those with incomes at or below $75,000 individual/$112,500 head of household/$150,000 filing jointly. Payments will phase out for those earning above those thresholds; these payments are phased out completely for single taxpayers with incomes exceeding $99,000 ($198,000 for joint filers).
- $100 billion for grants to hospitals and healthcare providers.
- $27 billion for research into better testing and treatment methods and the purchase of medical supplies and personal protective equipment.
- $16 billion for the Strategic National Stockpile to procure personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilators, and other medical supplies for federal and state response efforts.
- $4.3 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s public health response efforts.
- Businesses will receive a tax credit for keeping workers on payroll, and a refund for half of what they spend on wages, up to $5000 per worker. (No SBA loans will be available for business who choose the tax credit, to avoid “double-dipping.”)
- $150 billion through a Coronavirus Relief Fund for making payments to States, tribal governments, and local governments.
- $500 billion for a major corporate liquidity program through the Federal Reserve, which will be overseen by an inspector general and an oversight board to ensure the money is spent well.
- $349 billion in low-interest small business loans (some of which can be partially forgiven).
- $1.45 billion for the Defense Working Capital Funds as the Defense Logistics Agency and military services work to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on production lines, supply chain, military depots, and labs.
- $1.8 billion for the Defense Health Program, to address increased health care cases for eligible military members, dependents, and retirees, and to procure additional medical equipment/physical protective equipment for medical personnel and disease response.
- Employers and self-employed will be able to defer the 6.2% tax on wages (payments will be allowed to be spread out over two years).
- Additional $600/week provided to people receiving unemployment benefits.
- $200 million investment in telemedicine.
- $25 billion for food assistance, including $9 billion for child nutrition.
- $30 billion for schools and school districts.
To explore the bill further, a detailed summary is here, and the full text of the bill is here.
For more information on this bill, coronavirus resources in general, please visit my website. There you will also find county-specific information regarding coronavirus-related closures, such as beaches and businesses.
Here are some additional resources for the coronavirus crisis:
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