Tag: 3rd economic relief bill

White House, Senate GOP clash over testing funds

The Hill logoSenate Republicans are clashing with the White House over whether to include new money for coronavirus testing in the next relief package, which lawmakers estimate could swell to $2 trillion once Democratic demands are included.

The intraparty tension in the GOP could give Democrats leverage as congressional discussions intensify over the next couple weeks.

White House negotiators led by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows want to keep the size of the initial Republican offer to around $1 trillion. They’re balking at including another $25 billion for COVID-19 testing because states still haven’t spent much of the money Congress has already appropriated for testing. Congress appropriated $25 billion for testing in the $484 billion interim relief package Congress passed in April.

Five things being discussed for a new coronavirus relief bill

The Hill logoLawmakers are already publicly floating ideas for a fourth coronavirus relief bill only days after Congress passed a massive $2.2 trillion package.

The talks are in their preliminary stages, and any bill is unlikely to come together before both chambers return as soon as April 20. There are also plenty of hurdles as House Democrats signal they are moving quickly while Senate Republicans say they want to take a wait-and-see approach.

But that’s done little to stop members from pitching their own ideas, or industries from asking for help if there’s more legislation. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters that she talked this week with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who negotiated the first three packages.  Continue reading.

Democrats eye major infrastructure component in next coronavirus package

The Hill logoWith the ink barely dry on a massive, $2 trillion coronavirus relief package, House Democrats are already laying out their targets for the next round of emergency aid, including major investments in the nation’s infrastructure systems.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), joined by several key committee chairmen, said Monday that the Democrats’ fourth phase of coronavirus stimulus would be largely focused on helping the front-line medical workers, homebound parents and patients afflicted by the deadly virus — people who may have fallen through the cracks, she said, in Congress’s earlier responses to the fast-spreading pandemic.

As an additional component, Democrats are also eyeing new funding for water, broadband, schools and other infrastructure systems that have proven insufficient, they said, in the face of the current coronavirus crisis. Continue reading.