Washington – The House approved President Biden’s final version $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill on Wednesday, handing the new president a significant legislative victory as he works to stabilize an economy that is still struggling to recover from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The bill, known as the American Rescue Plan Act, passed 220 votes to 211. One Democrat – Rep. Jared Golden of Maine – joined all Republicans in voting against the measure. Golden had already voted against the House version of the bill that passed last week. The legislation will soon go to Biden’s desk, where he will sign it on Friday, the White House said. The Senate passed the bill along party lines after a voting marathon on Saturday.
In just 49 days of his presidency, Biden has secured what may prove to be the ultimate realization of his presidency’s domestic policy, injecting hundreds of billions of dollars into the economy and reinforcing his government’s efforts to speed up vaccinations, reopen schools and get Americans unemployed people back to work. President, Vice President Kamala Harris and First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, plan to travel to promote the package as soon as it passes Congress and is sanctioned on Friday, said White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
Mr. Biden celebrated the approval of his plan following the House vote and praised House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, calling her “the best and most capable speaker in our nation’s history” while leading the package through Congress and maintained unity among House Democrats.
“This legislation aims to give the backbone of this nation – the essential workers, the workers who built this country, the people who keep this country going – a chance to fight,” said the president.
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Democratic members of the House and Senate met after approval of the bill for an enrollment ceremony, during which Democratic leaders signed the legislation in the final stage, before it was sent to the White House for Biden’s signature.
“This is an important day in the history of our country because we have passed historic, consistent and transformative legislation,” said Pelosi in comments, noting that for many Democrats “this is the most important legislation that many of us will ever be a party to. “
Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats kept their promise to provide relief to the American people if Georgia voters elected two Democrats to the upper house, securing a 50-50 split, with Harris voting to break the tie.
“What do we say to America?” he said. “We say to America: ‘Aid is on its way’.”
The swift approval of the bill is reminiscent of former President Barack Obama’s successful pressure for the United States Recovery and Reinvestment Act shortly after taking office in 2009 to address the Great Recession. But that project cost less than half of the American Rescue Plan, and Biden, who was vice president at the time, seems to have concluded that raising is better, even if it means sacrificing some bipartisan support.
The American Rescue Plan provides $ 1,400 in direct payments to individuals who make up to $ 75,000 annually, $ 350 billion in aid to state and local governments, and $ 14 billion for vaccine distribution. The project also provides $ 130 billion to elementary, middle and high schools to help reopen safely.
It includes an additional $ 300 billion in weekly unemployment benefits through September and an expanded tax credit of up to $ 3,600 per child, initially distributed in monthly installments. The tax credit for children can lift 4 million children out of poverty, according to an analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
More than $ 50 billion will be distributed to small businesses, including $ 7 billion for the Payment Check Protection Program. The account also provides $ 25 billion for relief to small and medium-sized restaurants, which suffered significantly during the pandemic.
The measure expands eligibility for health insurance subsidies for people of all incomes under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a provision that was particularly controversial for Republicans who oppose the bill. It also encourages states to expand Medicaid under the ACA, making the federal government pay for new beneficiaries. Several million people could save hundreds of dollars in health care costs once the bill became law.
Psaki told reporters on Tuesday that many Americans will begin receiving their stimulus checks by the end of the month, and they will not carry Biden’s signature. Former President Donald Trump had his name printed on relief checks in previous rounds of aid.
Democrats have announced the economic aid package as one that provides a desperately needed lifeline for families most affected by the pandemic. But Republicans in both chambers criticized the measure for its $ 1.9 trillion price and scope, as well as the Democrats’ decision to take the plan to Congress without the support of the Republican Party.
A version of the president’s relief plan was passed by the House last week, but the Senate changed the package and passed it in a 50-49 vote on the party line. The lower house voted on Wednesday the measure amended by the Senate.
Changes to the Senate’s amendment include reducing the unemployment insurance benefit from $ 400 to $ 300 a week, but extending it through September 6 instead of ending the additional aid in August. It also made the first $ 10,200 in non-taxable unemployment benefits for families with an income of less than $ 150,000.
The bill amended by the Senate also limited eligibility for direct checks. These compromises were negotiated to satisfy moderate Democrats in the Senate, especially Senator Joe Manchin. Since Democrats have a majority of 50 seats in the Senate, they require the support of all 50 Democrats to pass any controversial legislation, which means that members like Manchin need to be appeased in order for the bills to pass.
Lawmakers used a process known as budget reconciliation to bring the aid plan to the two chambers, which allowed it to pass the Senate with a simple majority and without Republican support. But the package had to comply with certain rules that govern the reconciliation process, which led to an increase of the minimum wage by US $ 15 and was withdrawn from the original proposal that had been approved by the Chamber.
Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont who agrees with the Democrats, introduced an amendment to the final bill raising the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour by 2025, but failed in a 42-58 vote.