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(CNN) – Millions of Americans are still out of work. Many small companies and large airlines are struggling to stay afloat. And states are still grappling with huge budget gaps.
But none of them, nor others in need of relief from the coronavirus pandemic, will receive assistance from the federal government anytime soon, now that President Donald Trump has ordered a halt to negotiations with the Democratic-led House of Representatives.
The two sides never got very close in their efforts to pass another major economic rescue package, although talks were continuing. Last week, the House released a $ 2.2 trillion version of the $ 3 trillion aid bill it passed in May, while the White House was considering a package in the 1.5 trillion range. billions of dollars.
Another round of federal stimulus funding was deemed vital to propping up the nation’s economy at a time when the recovery is weakening. Previous rescue packages provided much-needed money to stabilize Americans who lost their jobs and businesses who lost clients amid the pandemic.
Just hours before Trump’s announcement, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated his calls for more fiscal stimulus, saying “the risks of overdoing it appear, for now, to be lower” than not providing more aid.
“The expansion is still far from complete,” Powell said Tuesday at the annual meeting of the National Association for Business Economics. “Too little support would lead to a weak recovery, creating unnecessary hardship for households and businesses … Even if policy actions eventually turn out to be greater than necessary, they will not be wasted.”
This is what was being considered:
A second round of stimulus checks for 160 million people
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle presented plans calling for a second round of direct stimulus payments to be sent. More than 160 million Americans received one-time payments, but most were made in June.
Payments were worth up to $ 1,200 for individuals and up to $ 2,400 per family, with an additional $ 500 per dependent. The Republicans had proposed keeping the amounts the same. Democrats had pushed to send a more generous second payment, asking for a maximum of $ 6,000 per household.
Increase in unemployment benefits
Many in Congress felt the unemployed should get extra help after the initial $ 600 weekly benefit upgrade ran out at the end of July, but couldn’t agree on a figure.
The House was adamant about wanting to extend the benefit through next January, while Senate Republicans had considered legislation that would have provided $ 300 a week through Dec. 27.
More than 26.5 million people were claiming unemployment benefits as of mid-September, according to the most recent figures from the Labor Department.
Money for small businesses
The Paycheck Protection Program provided more than 5 million emergency loans to small businesses to help cover payroll, rent, and utilities. But the deadline to apply passed in August. For many, the loan money had run out even earlier.
Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers support reopening the program so that some small businesses can apply for a second loan.
Relief for state and local governments
In their so-called skinny bill released last week, Democrats lowered their financial lifeline to state and local governments, proposing about $ 417 billion in assistance, instead of the $ 875 billion in their May legislation. .
Republicans, however, have not been interested in providing more aid to the states. In her tweet, Trump said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is calling for “bailing out high-crime and poorly managed Democratic states, money that is in no way related to COVID-19.”
More funding for education
National education leaders have been asking Congress for billions of dollars more since June, but have started the new school year with no more help than they received in March.
The CARES Act allocated about $ 30 billion for education, including universities. About $ 13 billion of that went to K-12 schools.
Republican proposals have included as much as $ 105 billion more for education, and the Democrats’ most recent bill, which the House passed last week, called for more than $ 220 billion for education.
Support for COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, vaccine development
Both parties reportedly provided additional money for tests, tracing and treatment, although they disagreed on the amount.
Enhanced Food Stamp Benefits
Democrats have pushed to increase the maximum food stamp benefit by 15% for months, but this provision never became final legislation amid opposition in the Senate.
That boost would provide each recipient with an additional $ 25 per month.
There were approximately 43 million people on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, as food stamps are formally known, in April, according to the most recent federal data. That’s a nearly 16% increase from the previous month, and experts say the number has likely only risen further since then.
Money for the postal service
The cash-strapped United States Postal Service has asked for money to help cover losses related to the pandemic. A Republican proposal would have forgiven a $ 10 billion loan it received from Congress earlier in the year. A Democratic plan would also have provided $ 15 billion in aid.
Liability protections
Republicans lobbied for provisions that would limit coronavirus-related lawsuits against businesses, universities, hospitals and healthcare workers, but Democrats did not support this.
Help for airlines
In their recent bill, Democrats called for providing $ 25 billion in aid to airlines, as well as $ 3 billion to airline contractors, and extended the ban on involuntary layoffs of workers until March 31. The Senate did not mention the airlines in their legislation early last month. .
This story was first published on CNN.com, “Trump stopped the stimulus talks. This is what it means to you.”
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