Senate Republicans propose to reduce the weekly unemployment benefit to $ 600 as part of their upcoming release plan.
The republican proposal, according to the secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin
Steven Terner Mnuchin White House, Republican Senate race to finalize coronavirus package ahead of Monday deployment Congress is slated for disorderly COVID-19 talks on deadlines on Sunday., will go to approximately 70 percent of an individual’s past wages.
But state and Republican lawmakers have warned that it could take weeks, if not months, to switch to unemployment benefits that would be scalable based on a person’s salary. Negotiators had discussed doing something similar during the March negotiations, but the Labor Department told them that because of archaic technology it was not possible.
Mnuchin told reporters that the Republican proposal will provide a “bridge” as states transition to the new system.
The Republican proposal will propose reducing the federal employment benefit to $ 200 a week and giving states approximately two months to transition to match previous wages, sources told The Washington Post and Bloomberg.
When asked about proposing $ 200 a week while states are in transition, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said he had spoken to Mnuchin, but that talks were ongoing.
“These are technical adjustments to the formulas. I don’t want to predict. They are in final talks as we speak,” Kudlow said.
Spokespersons for the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnell White House, Republican Senate race to finalize coronavirus package ahead of Monday deployment Congress prepares for messy COVID-19 talks about tight deadline AFSCME launches announcement asking for billions in aid aid for local governments MORE (R-Ky.) He did not immediately answer a question about the language of unemployment. Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows
Mark Randall Meadows White House, Republican Senate race to finalize coronavirus package before deployment Monday. Congress is slated for disorderly COVID-19 talks on deadlines on Sunday. We met with McConnell staff on Saturday and Sunday to discuss the language and try to finalize the general bill.
Democrats are pouncing on reports that Republicans will propose reducing the weekly unemployment benefit as states transition to a wage-based wage benefit.
“The White House is proving once again that it does not understand the despair of unemployed Americans. My message to Republicans is this: If you think $ 200 a week is enough to live on, give it a try first,” said the senator. Ron Wyden
Ronald (Ron) Lee Wyden In The Money: Congress Prepares For A Fight As An Unemployment Cliff Looms | Wave of evictions could be coming for the nation’s tenants | House of Representatives approves spending package of 9.5B Congress is ready for a fight as unemployment cliff approaches Democrats hit home secretary for allegedly refusing to wear mask to meet with MORE tribes (D-Ore.) He tweeted on Monday.
Michael Zona, spokesman for Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), declined to discuss the details of the bill before it was launched.
Zona, in another tweet, also said it would be “generous” to call Wyden’s tweet misleading.
“A federal benefit of $ 200 / week would be * in addition to * hundreds in state benefits. No unemployed American is asked to live on $ 200 a week. In 2009, under Obama and a fully Democratic Congress, the additional federal benefits were from ~ $ 25 / week, “he said.
Calling this misleading would be generous. A federal benefit of $ 200 per week would be * in addition to * hundreds in state benefits. No unemployed American is asked to live on $ 200 a week. In 2009, under Obama and a fully Democratic Congress, additional federal benefits were ~ $ 25 / week ~ https://t.co/ySOijTfXAF
– Michael Zona (@mjzona) July 27, 2020
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