Republican lawmakers are considering cutting emergency unemployment benefits to between $ 200 and $ 400 a week as federal spending during the coronavirus pandemic continues to skyrocket, The Washington Post reported Sunday.
It’s unclear what number Republican lawmakers will hit, but the Post’s report, which quotes attendees, said $ 200 a week seemed more likely.
The question of extending the increase in unemployment benefits is considered one of the main trouble spots, as Congress seeks to agree on a new coronavirus relief package in the coming weeks.
Several Republicans have voiced their opposition to the $ 600 per week worries about the deficit and that would leave some workers earning more money through benefits than through work. Some Republican lawmakers said the benefits would serve as a disincentive for people who return to work. Democrats claim that more money increases the amount of spending in the economy.
Leader of the Senate majority Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnell Democrats Call McConnell to Implement Voting Rights Act in Honor of Lewis Trump Mocks Drive to Rename Fort Bragg: “Shall We Name Him After Reverend Al Sharpton ? ” Republican Party seeks to reduce unemployment improvement to 0-0 per week: MORE report (R-Ky.) Is expected to launch a new package, estimated to hit $ 1 trillion, this week. The House has already approved a $ 3 trillion package that extends the $ 600 per week increase, which will expire at the end of the month.
The weekly payment will depend on how much of the Senate stimulus bill is spent on unemployment benefits.
Republican senators have considered spending between $ 200 billion and $ 300 billion on these benefits through the end of 2020, a source told the Post. This would be far less than $ 400 billion, the cost of extending the increase of $ 600 per week.
Senate Republicans also looked at new limits on unemployment benefits for those who had high incomes before they became unemployed, two people told the Post with details of internal planning. Republican senators discussed ending or reducing the amount of federal unemployment benefits for those who earned above a specific income and releasing stimulus checks targeting low-income people.
President Trump
Donald John Trump Kanye West says Harriet Tubman “never freed slaves” at rally Trump-Afghanistan deal passes key period, but evasive Republican peacekeepers in worst-hit states separated by COVID response -19 MORE It has also called for a payroll tax cut and liability protections for companies to be included in any new coronavirus relief law. If Trump and the Senate Republican Party wishes are granted, the bill will reduce taxes for people with jobs and benefits for unemployed people, the Post noted.
The HEROES Act passed by the House beginning in May proposed extending the increase of $ 600 per week until January.
The federal government stepped in to help states with unemployment payments during the pandemic. The unemployment rate reached 11.1 percent in June, falling from the April figures.
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