President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion relief package Thursday that included more stimulus payments and other direct aid, but don't expect to see those funds in your bank account anytime soon.
There's a lot that has to happen before Biden's plan — which is chock-full of measures long favored by Democrats — becomes law. And even though Democrats will soon control the White House and both chambers of Congress, that doesn't mean lawmakers will follow Biden's suggestions to the letter.
The earliest the money could start flowing? Maybe mid- to late February, said Kevin Kosar, resident scholar at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute and co-editor of the book "Congress Overwhelmed."
Biden's massive plan includes several immediate relief items that are popular with a wide swath of Americans, including sending another $1,400 in direct stimulus payments, extending unemployment benefits and eviction protections, and offering more help for small businesses. It also would boost funding for vaccinations by $20 billion and for coronavirus testing by $50 billion.
But it also calls for making some larger structural changes, such as mandating a $15 hourly minimum wage, expanding Obamacare premium subsidies and broadening tax credits for low-income Americans for a year.
It's the first of two measures Biden has planned to right the nation's economy and fight the coronavirus. He intends to announce a recovery strategy at his first appearance before a joint session of Congress next month.
President-elect Joe Biden speaks about the COVID-19 pandemic during an event at The Queen theater, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021, in Wilmington, Del. \
A president can propose ideas, but Congress passes the laws
Biden's relief proposal now shifts to Congress, where it may change substantially as Democratic leaders transform it into a bill. They must decide whether they want to use a special legislative process called reconciliation, which would require only a simple majority of votes to pass the Senate — eliminating the need for Republican support — but would limit the provisions that could be included. Also, reconciliation also be used only sparingly each year.
Another factor that could determine the path and speed at which lawmakers act is the health of the economy, said John Hudak, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. If the nation's jobs report in early February shows a continued deterioration of the labor market, for instance, Congress may be spurred to move faster and approve more assistance.
Whatever leaders decide, the effort is expected to have an easier time passing in the House — which approved a $3 trillion relief package last May that contained measures similar to those in Biden's plan — even though Democrats now hold a slimmer majority there.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, will have to maintain the support of nearly all of her party's members, including some progressive lawmakers who have already said they want to send even more help to Americans in need.
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York told The Washington Post on Thursday that people should get an additional $2,000 in stimulus checks on top of the $600 they received as part of the $900 billion relief package lawmakers passed last month — more than the $1,400 top-off payment Biden is suggesting.
A narrow margin in the Senate will mean compromises
The Senate is where a multitude of hurdles lie. Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York will soon take over as majority leader from Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, but the chamber will be split 50-50, with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris available to break any tie votes.
In coming weeks, senators will have their hands full with President Donald Trump's impeachment trial and with voting on the President-elect's Cabinet nominees, none of whom have been confirmed yet.
In his speech Thursday night, Biden said he would like to work with members of both parties to enact his American Rescue Plan, indicating that he wants to go the traditional route, which would require the backing of at least 10 Republican senators.
Biden will play an important role in the negotiations on Capitol Hill.
"A new president and a new tone from the White House can put some pretty significant pressure when pressure is needed," Hudak said. "For this to happen in some expedited time, it's really going to require significant influence from the president, especially on key senators."
One of those senators is Joe Manchin, a moderate Democrat from West Virginia. He has recently expressed doubts over providing $2,000 in stimulus payments, preferring a more targeted approach.
"I'm on board by helping people that need help, people that really can't make it, people that don't have a job," Manchin told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday. "Sending checks to people that basically already have a check and aren't going to be able to spend that or are not going to spend it — usually are putting it in their savings account right now — that's not who we are."
Securing support can be a laborious process.
"All the work of getting people lined up — that's likely going to take a lot of time," Kosar said.
Here's what's in Biden's $1.9T coronavirus rescue plan
Intro
President Joe Biden is proposing a $1.9 trillion plan to expand coronavirus vaccinations, help individuals and jump-start the economy. The plan, which would require congressional approval, is packed with proposals on health care, education, labor and cybersecurity. Here's a look at what's in it:
$20 billion to establish community vaccination centers
A $20 billion national program would establish community vaccination centers across the U.S. and send mobile units to remote communities. Medicaid patients would have their costs covered by the federal government, and the administration says it will take steps to ensure all people in the U.S. can receive the vaccine for free, regardless of their immigration status.
$50 billion to expand testing
An additional $50 billion would expand testing efforts and help schools and governments implement routine testing. Other efforts would focus on developing better treatments for COVID-19 and improving efforts to identify and track new strains of the virus.
$1,400 stimulus checks to Americans
Stimulus checks of $1,400 per person in addition to the $600 checks Congress approved in December. By bringing payments to $2,000 — an amount Democrats previously called for — the administration says it will help families meet basic needs and support local businesses.
Unemployment benefits and eviction moratorium extension
A temporary boost in unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures would be extended through September.
Paid sick leave requirement
An emergency measure requiring employers to provide paid sick leave would be reinstated. The administration is urging Congress to keep the requirement through Sept. 30 and expand it to federal employees.
Child care tax credit
The child care tax credit would be expanded for a year, to cover half the cost of child care up to $4,000 for one child and $8,000 for two or more for families making less than $125,000 a year. Families making between $125,000 and $400,000 would get a partial credit.
$40 billion for child care subsidies, centers
$15 billion in federal grants to help states subsidize child care for low-income families, along with a $25 billion fund to help child care centers in danger of closing.
$15 per hour federal minimum wage
The federal minimum wage would be raised to $15 per hour from the current rate of $7.25 per hour.
$130 billion for K-12 schools for reopening
$130 billion for K-12 schools to help them reopen safely. The money is meant to help reach Biden's goal of having a majority of the nation's K-8 schools open within his first 100 days in the White House. Schools could use the funding to cover a variety of costs, including the purchase of masks and other protective equipment, upgrades to ventilation systems and staffing for school nurses. Schools would be expected to use the funding to help students who fell behind on academics during the pandemic, and on efforts to meet students' mental health needs. A portion of the funding would go to education equity grants to help with challenges caused by the pandemic.
$35 billion for public colleges and universities
Public colleges and universities would get $35 billion to cover pandemic-related expenses and to steer funding to students as emergency grants. An additional $5 billion would go to governors to support programs helping students who were hit hardest by the pandemic.
$15 billion in grants to small businesses
$15 billion in grants to more than 1 million small businesses that have been hit hard by the pandemic, as well as other assistance.
$350 billion for front-line workers
$350 billion in emergency funding for state, local and territorial governments to help front-line workers.
$20 billion for public transit
$20 billion in aid to public transit agencies.
Cybersecurity updates, expansion
$9 billion to modernize information technology systems at federal agencies, motivated by recent cybersecurity attacks that penetrated multiple agencies.
$690 million to boost federal cybersecurity monitoring efforts and $200 million to hire hundreds of new cybersecurity experts.
